Foundation Blog
News, commentary, and voices in the efforts to eliminate HIV and AIDS in children worldwide.
Posted by
Esperance Nikuze
Kigali, Rwanda
May 26, 2011
Rwandan First Lady Jeanette Kagame
(left) greets new mothers at Ruhuha
Health Center. (Photo: EGPAF)
Rwanda is helping lead the way to end new cases of HIV and AIDS in children. This progress was on display recently when the Rwandan First Lady Jeanette Kagame launched the country’s national initiative to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
During a launch event, she remarked that “significant achievements have been made with PMTCT interventions, and Rwanda is able to prevent 6,500 children from acquiring HIV every year.”
Now more than 80% of health centers in the East-African nation offer prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV services.
Click past the jump to read more about the launch event and the Foundation's efforts to eliminate pediatric HIV in Rwanda.
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Posted by
Robert Yule
Washington, D.C.
May 20, 2011
(Photo: EGPAF)
A lot can happen in a year.
A week ago last year, we were just launching the Foundation’s new website and our blog in this space. Since then, you – our readers – have visited the blog almost 75,000 times, to read 154 posts about all aspects of our work.
We’ve written about our research, and advocacy and policy efforts. With our first-person Notes from the Field and individual Stories of Hope, we’ve also showcased our programs on the ground. Read more to see our highlights from a year of blogging.
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Posted by
Robert Yule
Washington, D.C.
May 19, 2011
This week for HIV Vaccine Awareness Day, the Foundation’s Vice President of Research Dr. Laura Guay issued a statement about the importance of including children in future AIDS vaccine clinical trials.
On our Facebook page, one of our readers expressed concern about the potential risks, and asked whether it was safe for infants and children to be a part of these types of trials.
We thought this would be a good opportunity to discuss the issue further on our blog. Read more after the jump.
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(Photo: EGPAF/Mia Collis)
Much progress has been made in recent years in the fight against HIV. Earlier this month, a new study was released confirming that using antiretroviral drugs to treat an HIV-infected person is a very effective way to prevent HIV transmission to another person.
However, today, as we commemorate HIV Vaccine Awareness Day, we're reminded that the science of an HIV vaccine is still beyond our grasp. Vitally important for infants and young children, as well as adults, an HIV vaccine would possibly set the stage for a lifetime of immunity to the virus.
Click past the jump to read more from the Foundation's Director of Clinical and Basic Research Dr. Jeffrey T. Safrit, about HIV vaccine studies, and how a vaccine could change the face of HIV.
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Posted by
Robert Yule
Washington, D.C.
May 16, 2011
Last week, we were reading several articles about a “groundbreaking” and “landmark” new AIDS study involving both treatment and prevention of HIV.
The HPTN 052 study used HIV treatment as a means of preventing sexual transmission of the virus within couples where one partner is HIV-positive, and the other is HIV-negative.
Continue past the jump to read more about this important study and to find out what other global health leaders are saying about it.
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Posted by
Mercy Nyanda
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
May 11, 2011
Tanzanian First Lady Madam Salma
Kikwete at the new maternity ward at the
Mangaka Health Centre
(Photo: EGPAF/Mercy Nyanda)
Last month, the opening of a new maternity ward in the Mtwara region of Tanzania received national attention when the Tanzanian First Lady arrived in person to lend her support.
Madam Salma Kikwete, who has long been a strong advocate in the fight against HIV, joined us as the guest of honor at the Foundation-supported facility in the Nanyumbu District.
Click past the jump for a first-hand account of the event from the Foundation's Program Coordinator for Communications and Outreach in Tanzania, Mercy Nyanda.
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