March 11, 2008

Doctor Goes to the Mat for South Africa's Positive Pregnant Mothers

After months of pressure from AIDS advocates, South Africa recently approved a World Health Organization (WHO)-recommended antiretroviral treatment regimen of AZT and nevirapine for HIV-positive pregnant women. However, controversy over the delayed adoption of the treatment guidelines remains, The New York Times reports (nytimes.com, 3/9).

Though many activists are happy that the new guidelines now include the WHO-recommended regimen, they also feel that it should have been put into practice long ago, according to the article.

Dr. Colin Pfaff and his colleagues argued for the two-drug combo to be administered in the country to reduce risk factors for newborn children of HIV-positive mothers. Pfaff was charged with misconduct earlier this year for going against protocol and administering the treatment without provincial approval, the Times reports.

Scroll down to comment on this story.

Previous Comments:

samuel_999, , 2008-03-12 03:37:19
so who must the doctors listen to? another clue here. doctors have become 'complicit technicians' because they must follow guidelines from military run health centers. and who do militaries listen to? well, depending upon the country it could be a cruel dictator, or if its outside the U.S. it might be a religious fanatic who is homophobic. think poz editors. think a lot.