Most children with the disease are infected in the womb or during birth.

What is HIV?

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is an infection that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a chronic, life-threatening condition.

AIDS occurs when the HIV infection damages or destroys the cells of the immune system, reducing the body's ability to fight off bacterial, viral and fungal infections.

As the immune system fails, the person becomes vulnerable to illnesses they would normally resist (known as opportunistic infections), such as pneumonia, meningitis, intestinal infection and certain types of cancers.

HIV in children is uncommon in Europe and the UK. However, it is estimated that over 2 million children worldwide have HIV, most of them are in sub-Saharan Africa.

The initial infection with HIV may cause a brief flu-like illness two to six weeks after infection, with symptoms such as fever, headache, sore throat and swollen lymph glands.

However, many people don't show any particular symptoms and children are often infected while in the womb.

There appear to be two general patterns of illness in HIV-infected children.

• About 20 per cent develop serious disease in the first year of life, most of whom die by the age of four
• In the remaining 80 per cent, the disease progresses more slowly

Children with HIV often fail to gain weight and don't grow properly. They may develop problems with walking, or show delayed mental development.

Like adults, children are vulnerable to opportunistic infections and normal childhood infections can be severe.Link...