SOCIAL CARE OF CHILDREN BORN TO HIV-INFECTED MOTHERS IN EUROPE

Children of HIV-infected women are likely to be profoundly affected by their mothers' infection, regardless of their own infection status an d their number will increase with the spread of infection among women in Europe. This article describes the family circumstances and social care of 1,123 children born to HIV-infected women enrolled in the Euro pean Collaborative Study and followed prospectively from birth. Most m others were white, married or cohabiting, asymptomatic and had a histo ry of drug use, with 45% currently using injecting drugs at the time o f enrolment. Seventy percent of children were cared for by their mothe rs and/or fathers consistently in their first four years of life, but by age eight an estimated 60% will have lived away from their parents (i.e. with foster or adoptive parents, other relatives or in an instit ution). Whether or not a child was infected did not influence the like lihood of living in alternative care. Maternal injecting drug use, sin gle parenthood and health status were the major reasons necessitating alternative care. The type of alternative care varied according to mat ernal characteristics, child's age and geographic location. The mother s of 98 children had died and average age at maternal death was four y ears.