Recognition and management of HIV in children and families

Abstract 

HIV infection is the mimicking disease of the age, capable of leading to presentation in almost any surgery or clinic. Children with HIV infection may present in many different ways, and recognizing potential signs and symptoms confronts the doctor with some difficult choices not only in terms of diagnosis, but in handling an initial sensitive consultation to discuss testing. Trust and confidence are of paramount importance.

Such is the stigma associated with being HIV infected, that some parents may confront the request for testing their child with indignation and alarm. Even worse is the tendency for professionals, including doctors, to duck the issue and skirt round the thorny subject of testing all together, which may not be in the best interests of the child or family. In this article, I would like to present the situation as I really see it, and share my experience of trouble-shooting HIV-related problems in families from a paediatric perspective.

Keywords: paediatric, HIV, prevention, antiretroviral, treatment, family, clinic

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• f1 Correspondence to: CSB Tel: 0207 346 3984; fax: 0207 346 3654; Email: colin.ball@kcl.ac.uk