What is Vertical Transmission for HIV Prevention? Vertical transmission of HIV (also known as mother to child transmission and abbreviated as ‘MTCT’) has been virtually eliminated in the global North. This is because treatment to prevent HIV infection in newborns has been available for over a decade. The treatment involves is providing a simple, affordable bio-medical intervention, providing ARV drugs to mother and child at birth, to a highly visible and easy to reach target population. Research into improved design of vertical transmission services at birth and during breastfeeding remain an important goal in reducing infant HIV infection.
Vertical Transmission Prevention Investment. In its second year of monitoring funding for operations research related to prevention of vertical transmission, the Working Group identified US$51 million in funding in 2009. The public-sector accounted for nearly all of the funding (99%), with the philanthropic sector providing the remainder (The increase in vertical transmission investment is the result of more comprehensive reporting in 2009, rather than an increase in funding over 2008). In 2009, there were 10 active clinical trials, related to prevention of transmission at birth or through breastfeeding, funded by the ANRS, CDC, through the EC, the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP), and NIH.
N.B. Figures and Tables are taken from the report Advancing the Science in a Time of Fiscal Constraint: Funding for HIV Prevention Technologies in 2009.
