According to a recent study, HIV-positive women on appropriate treatment can all but eliminate the risk that they will pass the virus on to their children, the BBC reports (news.bbc.co.uk, 5/6).

Data on more than 5,000 HIV-positive pregnant women in the U.K. and Ireland found an infant infection rate of 1.2 percent when steps to prevent HIV transmission were taken.

According to the article, before effective treatment was available, more than 20 percent of babies born to positive mothers were infected.

The study’s researchers, from University College London, say their results marked the first time such low infant infection rates have been observed at a population level.