Of course, we claim that we are not affected and that we do not need to know about HIV/AIDS. There is no more misleading approach. Each of us should take an HIV test for ourselves and, importantly, we should also know our partner's result.

If possible, we should also learn more about HIV, how to be infected, how to detect it and how to treat it. It is also important to learn more about treatment after HIV diagnosis and about parenting issues when we are HIV positive.

Every pregnant woman should also think about doing an HIV test. However, studies and statistics show that only a small number of women do this. This unfortunately leads to vertical transmission of the infection to the child by the mother. What tests are performed to diagnose HIV in a pregnant woman? When is treatment undertaken? Can an infected woman give birth to a healthy baby?

There is nothing complicated or painful aboutperforming an HIV test. Blood is taken from the patient and the finding of anti-HIV antibodies means a clear diagnosis of a chronic disease. Many patients see this as a sentence, with no chance of a normal life or of having healthy offspring. The disease is not a sentence. It requires long-term, specialised treatment and the support of many people, but it offers the chance of giving birth to a healthy child.

Let us remember that every pregnant woman should have an HIV test. And if it is found to be infected, the diagnosis should be extended to other sexually transmitted diseases. Infection of the baby does not usually occur at the very beginning of pregnancy, i.e. during the first 12 weeks. It is greatest at the end of pregnancy and during labour. The risk is greatest when there is a very high concentration of the virus in the mother's blood (advanced stage of the disease, up to three months after infection) and when the CD4 cell count in the mother's blood is very low.

photo: pantherstock

Doctors and organisations of all kinds are calling for us to get tested for HIV. It is nothing to be ashamed of, let us take responsibility not only for our own health and life, but also for the lives of others.