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Children - 2.5 Children affected by HIV/AIDS in Cambodia
Cambodia and Thailand currently have the highest proportion of AIDS orphans (one or both parents have died) in Asia (13) . With over 50% of Cambodians under the age of 18, children and young people are significantly affected by HIV/AIDS and are likely to become more so. Predictions for the end of 2000 based on surveillance figures from 1998, show that over 5% of all infections are likely to be in children under 18 years and that some 7,500 children will have died of AIDS. Although exact numbers are not yet known, it is estimated that there are currently more than 30,000 children under the age of 15 orphaned by AIDS. This is seen as a conservative estimate which is likely to increase to around 140,000 (approximately 3% of all children under the age of 15) by 2005.
A recent AIDS Alliance evaluation of the Cambodian Home Based Care network showed that approximately 21% of the children in families affected by AIDS have had to start working to support the family in the last six months. More than 30% have to provide care and take up other major additional household tasks. 40% of these children have had to leave school, and the same percentage have had to go without basic necessities such as food and clothes. 28% of children have left home or been sent away from home.
Globally, without intervention roughly one third of children born to HIV positive mothers will be HIV infected by the end of their first year. Infection occurs in the womb, during delivery or through breastfeeding. Children may also become infected in all the same ways as adults through contaminated blood transfusions or medical equipment, and through sexual abuse (14) . HIV positive parents in Cambodia who have access to testing must wait the full 15 months before being certain whether their newborn child is infected. This is the age when the child’s own antibodies have replaced those of the mother, and a blood test will show whether or not HIV is present in the body. To make sure, a second test should be done after 3 months.
Fact
The Home-Based Care network of Khana partners, International NGOs and government nurses report a 50% increase in numbers of children living in families with HIV/AIDS over the past 6 months. Numbers of HIV positive children has also increased by half. Furthermore, from their caseload of 700 patients, an average of 52 children are orphaned by AIDS every month.
Footnotes
(13) Report on the Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic, UNAIDS/WHO, June 1998
(14) AHRTAG. "Caring with Confidence: Practical information for health workers who prevent and treat HIV infection in children". Briefing Paper.