27% Pregnant Women In Bihar Not Tested For HIV: State Health Department Reports
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a deadly virus that affects the immune system. According to a report, in the last 10 years, 17 lakh people have contracted HIV in India. However, the numbers have significantly gone down in the year 2021-2022. Recently, as per the Health Department data, 27% of pregnant women in Bihar have not been screened for HIV in the financial year 2021-22. The department’s data also show that 30.43 lakh antenatal care registrations (ANC) were also one in the same year. The information was reported by the state officials supervising the AIDS control program.
It has been made mandatory by the Centre and the state government to check for HIV in pregnant women. Moreover to curb transmission from the mother to child. However, the aforementioned data from Bihar goes against the mandate.
According to the officials underreporting from private maternity clinics and a 25% testing gap are some reasons for the above data. They further said that the 2% is because there is a lack of testing in remote areas or in cases of normal vaginal deliveries, as quoted by Hindustan Times.
The Patna Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India (FOGSI) stated that the guidelines on reporting HIV were not clearly put out by the government. Dr Kumari Majnu, the treasurer of FOGSI further said that the numbers might also be due to a “lack of awareness in doctors because the authorities have not done enough to sensitise them”
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According to the report, there are 67,601people living with HIV (PLHIV) on antiretroviral treatment (ART) in Bihar, making it rank eighth in India after Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Gujarat. It’s also important to note that, in a year Bihar records around 8,000 PLHIV and stands third after Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, according to the health specialist of Bihar, Dr S Siddhartha Shankar Reddy.
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