HIV-Exposed Infants Have Reduced Antibodies Against Diseases

Infants with prenatal exposure to HIV are born with fewer antibodies to fight diseases such as hepatitis B and whooping cough, according to a study in South Africa that doctors say could lead to expansion of vaccination programs to include HIV-infected pregnant women.

Of infants exposed to HIV before birth without becoming infected themselves, 17 percent had antibody levels thought to protect against Haemophilus influenza type B, or HiB, compared with 52 percent of infants without exposure, researchers said today in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Twenty-one percent of those exposed had antibodies against hepatitis B compared with 54 percent of unexposed babies.