Question
My baby is on nevirapine and I’m breastfeeding, is my baby positive?
19 August 2016. Related: All topics, Pregnancy.
Answer
Firstly, congratulations on having your baby.
It is normal for your baby to be given a short course (4 weeks) of HIV treatment (such as nevirapine) when born. This doesn’t mean your baby is HIV positive. This will be checked later through testing. A different type of testing is also used on babies as the normal antibody test used in adults will show the baby as positive.
Our guide on pregnancy has lots more information
https://i-base.info/guides/pregnancy
In the UK, the BHIVA (British HIV Association) guidelines recommend bottle feeding.
This is because in countries where mothers can have access to to formula milk AND clean water ANDÂ bottle sterilising equipment, the risk of transmitting HIV to the baby through bottle feeding is zero. There are different recommendations for other countries though and many women breastfeed. I am not sure about the recommendations in Zambia.
This means that you are doing the best that you can to protect your baby.
However, being positive and looking after a new born baby can be hard and many people need help. Do you have much support around you to help or are you touch with good care from your doctor?
Hi Z, if you are going to exclusively formula feed after 6 months this is safe. If you are wishing to use breast and formula for 4 – 6 months this is not recommended. Mixed feeding does increase risk of transmission. Mixed feeding is only suitable after 6 months.
If baby has been given medication from the doctor for a rash they will be safe to take this.
Hello my zowie im on ART and my baby tested negative he is 3 weeks old now and on NVP for 6 weeks if i may ask is it possible to stop breast feeding at 4 months instead of 6 months due to work and change the baby to formula feed is it safe for my baby? And if the baby has developed some rashes can i give him medication from a doctor?
Hi Lungi, congratulations on your baby. It is great that you started ARVs as soon as you could. This is going to help significantly. Your baby is not at any more risk because of not starting Nevirapine when in labour. Nevirapine is only given after when baby is being fed (breast or formula).
Baby will be on Nevirapine for the first few weeks. For how long depends on your own viral load at birth and how baby is being fed. Often Nevirapine is given no longer than 12 weeks regardless of the circumstances and this will be discussed with your doctor.
Many women do not start ARVs until much later in their pregnancy and go on to have healthy, HIV negative children. There is no reason to think that you will be any different. Both you and baby are currently on ARVs and given that you are breastfeeding the risk of transmission is now very little. You are doing a great job.
Lungi
I started arvs at 34 weeks pregnant and I gave birth at 39 weeks. I breastfed my baby only 4 hours while at the clinic and changed to formula milk only once gotten home, my baby is on nvp, when can she stop taking nvp? Is she in the risk of being hiv positive because I didn’t take nvp when labour start?
Hi Asa, congratulations on having your baby. Have you had this discussion with your doctor? Usually Nevirapine and Zidovudine are given to baby for 6-12 weeks. The specific time is determined by the risk to the baby. 6 weeks is often in cases when mum is undetectable and has been on treatment for a while. What might extend the time your baby is on these medications is the time mixed feeding. As mixed feeding can increase the risk of transmission it is possible that baby will stay on their medications for a little longer. This needs to be a conversation with the doctor that prescribed the medication.
Hi am HiV positive and have been breast feeding,and made a mistake of mix feeding for 1week but then after I knowing the dangers of mix feeding I then went back to breast feeding only,and then 2weeks later realise to just formula feed,is it safe for my child to stop neverapine and zidovudine nw coz he’s 7weeks already.
Hi Dana, mixed feeding is not recommended but if you want to return to breast feeding, and only breastfeed from that point there will be no additional risk to baby.
Hi my baby is 4days old and on nvp am formula feeding and i want to go back to breastfeeding is it safe for me to do so??,, It affect my baby in any way??..
Hi Neo, congratulations on having a baby. Your baby should be on Nevirapine for a minimum of 4-6 weeks. The total length of time is determined by how ‘risky’ the pregnancy was e.g., if you are on ART and what your viral load was/is. However as you are exclusively formula feeding it would be expected to give Nevirapine no longer than 6 weeks.
Hi, I’m HIV positive and just gave birth recently and the baby’s results are negative. I’m not breastfeeding, how long does my baby have to take nvp while on formula feeding ?