Early Infant Diagnosis for HIV infection on babies done at SM Dev Civil Hospital

February 27: Early Infant Diagnosis (EID) services for diagnosing HIV infection on babies was initiated in S.M. Dev Civil Hospital, Silchar on Tuesday with active support of Assam State AIDS Control Society (ASACS) and Piramal Swasthya Management and Research Institute’s (PSMRI) AHANA Project.

Early Infant Diagnosis (EID) is usually based on the testing of blood samples, collected from infants at least 6 weeks old, using a Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test for the detection of HIV deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA).
Early diagnosis of HIV allows health-care providers to offer optimal care and treatment of HIV infected children and thereby assist them in decision-making on infant feeding. The service is already available at Silchar Medical College & Hospital and Kalain FRU.