Abstract

Background: Women have emerged as the fastest growing HIV infected population worldwide, mainly because of the increasing occurrence of heterosexual transmission. Most infected women are of reproductive age and one of the greatest concerns is that more than 1,600 infants become infected with HIV each day. Advances in HIV therapy and mother-to-child transmission prophylaxis have led to increasing use of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs in pregnancy. An additional problem to vertical transmission of HIV is the risk of congenital malformations in children born to HIV infected mothers. There are however only a few published data on the safety of ARV therapy to human embryos/fetuses. This report presents the case of a 2-month-old HIV positive child born to a HIV positive mother who presented with multiple congenital malformations.
Case Report: A 2 months old male baby presented to the eye clinic of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City, Nigeria on the 6th of March 2006 with a history of growths in both eyes since birth. Examination showed a limbal dermoid in the right eye, a dermolipoma in the left eye, polypoid lesions in both ears and the right nostril, low set ears, right malar hypoplasia and lower lip deformity, and imperforate anus.
Conclusions: Identified risk factors for congenital malformations in HIV include the maternal HIV status resulting in a prolonged febrile illness throughout the first trimester, antiretroviral therapy commenced during the second trimester, and other drug ingestion during the febrile illness. Antiretroviral therapy is the least likely cause of the congenital anomalies and should be encouraged.

Keywords: AIDS/HIV, congenital malformations, ocular, polypoid masses, imperforate anus