Management of HIV-infected children in the home and institutional settings - Care of children and infections control in schools, day care, hospital settings, home, foster care, and adoption

The number of children living with AIDS has increased by 35% between 1992 and 1997 and a higher percentage HIV-exposed and HIV-infected children are being cared for in day centers and are attending schools and reaching adolescence. This article discusses the prevention of HIV transmission and other infections in settings where all children are cared for, generic considerations in the care of HIV-infected or exposed children regardless of locations, and some special issues that face caretakers of HIV-infected children and adolescents in specific settings. It emphasizes the principle of inclusion of these children in all settings when their health conditions allow it, maintaining confidentiality of the child's HIV status, notifying those who need to know in order to care properly for the child or adolescent, and HIV postexposure prophylaxis for childhood-related exposures outside of perinatal exposures on a case-by-case basis.