Abstract:
The use of single dose nevirapine to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV has been reported to induce
drug-resistant mutations and reduce options for antiretroviral treatment for HIV-infected mothers and their
children. To explore the status of nevirapine-resistant HIV genotypes in rural hospitals in the North Rift Valley
Province of Kenya, samples collected 3 months after single dose nevirapine from 36 mothers and their children
were analyzed. Resistance mutations were genotypically evaluated through proviral DNA amplification,
cloning, and sequencing. Ten mothers (27.8%) had antiretroviral-associated resistance mutations of whom four
(11.1%) had specific nevirapine (NNRTI) resistance-associated mutations. Three mothers (8.3%) transmitted the
infection to their infants. This presence of nevirapine mutations in rural antenatal clinic attendees confirms the
importance of integrating antiretroviral resistance monitoring as a key component in programs geared to prevention
of HIV mother-to-child transmission.
