Uninfected children of HIV-infected mothers should be screened and followed up long-term for psychiatric problems. Researchers from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine measured the mental health of a group of 129 children in the age group of 8–12 years whose mothers had late-stage HIV/AIDS. It was found that all children assessed five times over the course of the study had clinically significant psychiatric and / or behavioural symptoms during the study period. Two-thirds of the children had chronic psychological problems — that is, persistent symptoms were seen in at least three of the five times they were measured. It was also found that while two-thirds of the children received mental health services during the study, less than a quarter did at any one time, and 28 per cent of the children with chronic clinically significant symptoms never received mental health care. As the numbers of children who are living with a mother with HIV/AIDS increase, the numbers of children who need routine mental health assessment, referral, and treatment will increase as well. Paediatricians are best placed to assist these children, because they often know the maternal health history, they see children over time in their practice and they can identify and refer children with mental health problems to paediatric mental health services that can address their complex needs.
Pediatrics,
November 2007