The 17th International Workshop on Pediatrics & HIV will take place in a hybrid format from 11-12 July 2025 in Kigali, Rwanda.

Although we have  seen  a dramatic  increase   in  antiretroviral treatment (ART)  use   worldwide,  as well as efforts to prevent vertical  transmission   of  HIV  over  the  past  decade, there were 150,000 new pediatric infections in 2021 and an estimated 1.68 million children  under   15  years of age  are  living with HIV. Children are  far  less likely than adults to be diagnosed,  to   start  treatment, and  to  achieve  sustained  viral suppression. Currently, only 54% are receiving ART, and pediatric  HIV   treatment,  particularly in infants and children, remains complex and  challenging,  with  the  continued use of suboptimal ART formulations and regimens. 

In   addition,  adolescents are one of the  fastest  growing populations  infected  with  HIV.   In  2021, there  will   be  an estimated 410,000 new HIV infections among young people aged  15   to   24,   representing  27% of all new HIV infections globally. HIV infections among  adolescents  and young women are 65% higher than among  adolescents  and young men of the same age, with 4,900 new infections occurring  each   week   among  young  women.  HIV remains  a  leading  cause  of death among adolescents living in Africa and  one   of  the top 10 causes of death  among  adolescents  worldwide.  HIV testing  uptake  among adolescents  remains  low. Programs continue to struggle to reach and retain adolescents in care, and adherence to treatment  presents   particular  challenges, particularly among those with perinatal infection  who   age  into adolescence and  early   childhood. 

As research to improve HIV diagnosis and care  for   children   continues,  new  critical  scientific questions  are  also  emerging.  In settings with mature ART programs, an increasing proportion of new pediatric infections is attributed to women  who   acquired  HIV infection during pregnancy and breastfeeding, periods  when   the   mother’s  risk of  acquiring  HIV  is   substantially   increased.  However, the use of newer, highly  effective,  pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV acquisition has been limited in pregnant and  lactating  women due to  a   lack   of  available data on the pharmacokinetics and safety of these  drugs  these  periods.  and  their  limited availability in  the   low-resource  settings where most women with HIV reside. The introduction of new long-acting agents for treatment and prevention  offers  important opportunities to identify new approaches and  answer   next-generation  questions  about  implementation,  adoption,  and persistence  among   women  and pregnant  women.  and  teenagers   in   tin.  The use of newer  antiretroviral  regimens, such as dolutegravir, by women living with HIV may affect the sensitivity of rapid nucleic acid diagnostic tests, complicating  the   diagnosis   of   children.   Furthermore,  with more than 1.3 million pregnant women  worldwide  receiving  antiretroviral   therapy,  a new set of questions  is   emerging  about the long-term impact of in utero and postnatal  drug   exposure   on  HIV-exposed but uninfected  children.  Currently, the global population of uninfected children and adolescents  exposed   to   HIV  is estimated  to   be  14.8 million,  with   more   than  8 million  exposed   to   ARVs   in   utero.  The importance of  monitoring  the safety of new ARVs  during  pregnancy is  highlighted  by the initial signal of an association  between  neural tube defects  and   exposure   to  dolutegravir  during   the   periconceptional   period,  which was  found  to be  spurious  after  a  sufficient  number  of exposures  were   documented.   

Innovations  in early  childhood   diagnosis,  such as point-of-care  testing,   have  facilitated  the   early  identification of HIV infection during infancy, providing exciting new opportunities to study acute infection and very early treatment in  newborns,  and promising  strategies   for   remission.   

However,  despite the critical importance of these topics, research  on  HIV infection  in   children,   adolescents,   and   mothers  is often  overlooked  at  mainstream   HIV  scientific conferences.  That   is   why,  in collaboration with leading experts in the field, we  are   continuing  our international workshop  with   a   strong   focus  on the prevention and treatment of pediatric  HIV.   

The  overall objective of the International Workshop on Pediatrics  and  HIV is to stimulate research that will advance prevention and treatment strategies for infants,  children  and adolescents. The workshop aims to provide a platform for  the  presentation and discussion of the latest developments in the field, to  bring   together  experts involved in pediatric and perinatal  HIV  and to promote diversity and the next generation of research in the  field.  The workshop has been  very  effective in attracting  high-level  research  presentations   on  pediatric and maternal HIV; of  the  248 oral abstracts presented  during   previous  workshops in 2013-2023, 148 (60%) have resulted in scientific publications. 

For more information and to register: https://academicmedicaleducation.com/meeting/17th-international-workshop-pediatrics-hiv-2025.

For more opportunities, join our WhatsApp group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/LFQhJxtqEnMCpuHRgKlOXt