Nigeria, WHO tackle HIV drug resistance in children

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 'Why disease is difficult to eliminate now'

NIGERIAN officials working with experts from the World Health Organisation (WHO) are reviewing efforts and working on new strategies to check the rate of Human Immune Virus (HIV) drug resistance in children in Nigeria.

HIV drug resistance, according to the WHO, refers to the ability of the virus to withstand the effects of a given anti-retroviral drug to prevent its replication.

"Drug resistant virus will continue to replicate in the presence of the drug to which it has become resistant. As ART continues to expand, the emergence of some drug resistance is inevitable. Insufficient knowledge among patients and health workers, suboptimal adherence to treatment regimens, drug stock-outs, and inadequate patient monitoring mechanisms are among the many factors leading to treatment failure and eventually drug resistance, "the WHO said in a fact sheet.

As at December 2010, the number of children less than 15 years living with HIV was estimated to be 3.4 million.

To prepare the country to treat drug resistant HIV, the Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN) and the National HIV Drug Resistance Technical Working Group yesterday started work on a national guidance/roadmap on HIV resistance drugs in children.

The IHVN said the meeting would deliberate on and adapt WHO protocols that will smoothen the process for treating both adults and children who fail second line therapy for HIV in Nigeria.

Acting Director of Laboratory Research at the institute, Dr. Nicaise Ndembi, who spoke at the experts' group meeting in Abuja, stressed that the meeting would deliberate on the Pediatric HIV Drug Resistance Survey, Transmitted HIV Drug Resistance Survey and Pre-therapy HIV Drug Resistance Survey, the three WHO protocols yet to be implemented by Nigeria.

He stressed that the institute was also working on getting the Asokoro Laboratory Training Centre accredited for HIV drug resistance testing within the WHO Resistance Network.

"The meeting will also provide an avenue for discourse on the magnitude of HIV drug resistance in the country. The Federal Ministry of Health, World Health Organisation and several implementing partners are assisting in the process," he stressed.

Meanwhile, the institute has stressed the difficulties in eliminating the HIV/AIDS endemic in Nigeria.

Ndembi, who spoke on the worrisome situation, said: "It is difficult to say we have to eliminate HIV/AIDS by now because many people who are supposed to be on treatment do not have access to it. How then will you eliminate the ailment? In Africa in general, only 60 per cent of persons that are in need of drugs has access to them. How about the 40 per cent?

"How can you eliminate something when you have not covered everyone? So, I am really against that idea saying 'eliminate HIV/AIDS'. We don't have enough resources. Look at 100 people who are in need of drugs, only 60 have access, what about the remaining 40? How can you eliminate something that you cannot fight against?"

 

He urged government to step up effort in making antiretroviral drugs for the treatment of the disease available, and urged persons living with the virus to adhere strictly to taking their drugs, failure of which, according to him, contributes greatly to drug resistance.



The Guardian