Each year, an estimated 590,000 infants acquire human immunodeficiency virus type 1
(HIV) infection from their mothers, mostly in developing countries that are unable to
implement interventions now standard in the industrialized world. In resource-poor settings,
the HIV pandemic has eroded hard-won gains in infant and child survival. Recent clinical
trial results from international settings suggest that short-course antiretroviral regimens could
significantly reduce perinatal HIV transmission worldwide if research findings could be …