Abstract
About 40% of the new HIV infections in Ethiopia are among children < 15 years of age. The great majority of these infections occur through Mother-to-child HIV transmission (MTCT). For prevention of MTCT, the national guidelines has been revised to incorporate scientific advances in HIV prevention, treatment and care. Since 2005, the country has been implementing a peer mentor programme called Mother Support Group (MSG), which provides psychosocial and adherence support for HIV positive mothers. This study examined implementation of PMTCT guidelines revisions and outcomes of HIV exposed babies in the MSG in Addis Ababa. Retrospective routine data were collected between 2005 and August 2013 from seven randomly selected primary health facilities. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated using logistic regression models. Several guidelines revisions were made between 2001 and 2013 in HIV testing approaches, prophylactic antiretroviral options, infant feeding recommendations and infant HIV testing algorithms. Revisions on the CD4 thresholds were associated with a significant increase in the proportion of women initiating antiretroviral treatment from 0 in 2005 to 62% in 2013. Revisions in infant feeding recommendations led to a 92.3% reported practice of exclusive breastfeeding in 2013 compared to 60.9% in 2005. Two and four percent of the HIV exposed babies were HIV positive by six and 18 months respectively. Not receiving prophylactic ART and receiving mixed feeding were independent predictors for babies having an HIV positive antibody test at 18 months. The rate of HIV status disclosure increased significantly year by year. Over the years, the PMTCT recommendations have moved from having a solo focus on PMTCT to holistic and inclusive approaches emphasizing survival beyond HIV prevention. The data reflect favourable outcomes of HIV exposed babies in terms of averted MTCT though serious gaps in data quality remain. For successful implementation of Option-B plus, the identified gaps in the MSG need to be addressed.