Free medicine for HIV positive children soon

September 18, 2006

Boost for roll-out programme at 86 ART centres across India

Anuradha Mascarenhas

Mumbai, September 17: For the first time, Emtri Junior, a paediatric

formulation will be provided free for children living with HIV at

the 86 Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) centres across India. Till now,

these children had to make do with the same medicine that was

administered to adults, but in reduced dosage.

The ART roll-out programme is being stepped up with the setting up

of 85 centres and introduction of a paediatric formulation.

In Maharashtra, apart from the existing four ART centres in Mumbai

and one each at Pune, Sangli and Nagpur, four other centres will

start shortly at Ambejogai, Aurangabad, Dhule and Akola. The setting

up of ART centres is part of the government's plan to provide free

medicines to at least one lakh people living with HIV (PLHA) by next

year. Priority is given to those PLHAs whose CD 4 count is less than

200. In the country, 33,000 PLHAs have been given the medicines, so

far.

At Mumbai hospitals—J J, KEM, Nair and Sion, the intake of patients

has been increased to 2,000 each while the new centres at Ambejogai,

Aurangabad, Dhule and Akola will provide free medicines to 700

persons each.''

Dr A L Kakrani, in-charge of the ART centre at Sassoon General

Hospital, Pune said that there are 1,450 patients who were receiving

the drugs and as per the new guidelines, the intake of patients has

been increased to 2,000.

" For the last one-and-a-half years, tablets given to adults were

halved and then given to children living with HIV. But introducing

Emtri Junior at the ART centres has now done away with this process.

This tablet is a dispersible one and includes the combination of

nevirapine, lamivudine and stavudine,'' says Kakrani.

Children who are taking anti-tuberculosis drugs will be given a

combination of stavudine, lamivudine and efivarenz junior, he added.

Of the present lot taking drugs at the ART centre in Pune, 80 are

children, Kakrani said, adding that they have received 40 per cent

of the drug supply from the National AIDS Control Organisation.

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