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The
South African government's policy to reduce the risk of mother
to child transmission of HIV remains unchanged, Health Minister
Manto Tshabalala-Msimang said in a statement yesterday.
"The Department of Health will continue providing Nevirapine as
monotherapy to mothers and babies at public health facilities until
new agreed upon treatment regimens are available," she said.
Tshabalala-Msimang also said a consultative workshop would be held
after the 15th International Aids Conference underway in Bangkok,
Thailand, to revisit the treatment protocols for the Prevention of
Mother To Child Transmission of HIV (PMTCT) programme.
This follows the Medicines Control Council's (MCC's) recommendation
that a combination of antiretrovirals be used instead of a single
dose of Nevirapine for PMTCT.
"It must be emphasised that the MCC did not recommend that the use
of Nevirapine be stopped altogether, but that it should be used in
combination with other drugs, because it is showing a significant
resistance of up to 50%. Also, the drug has not been deregistered
as indicated in media reports," Tshabalala-Msimang said.
She added that the MCC's findings were in line with a recent World
Health Organisation's recommendation that stated that combination
therapy using both AZT and Nevirapine is the preferred approach to
a single dose for PMTCT. – Sapa.
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