FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO HIV TRANSMISSION AMONG CHILDREN BELOW 12 YEARS ATTENDING HIV CLINIC AT MPIGI HEALTH CENTRE IV, MPIGI DISTRICT, UGANDA

Abstract

This study explored the factors contributing to the transmission of HIV among children below 12 years in Mpigi, Uganda. Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that damages the body’s immune system and weakens its ability to fight opportunistic infections and diseases (NHS, 2021). HIV infection remains a major global public health problem and particularly in low and middle-income countries (Osório, Munyangaju, Nacarapa, Muhiwa, Nhangave, Ramos, 2021). Of the estimated 36.7 million people living with HIV worldwide, 69.4 percent live in sub-Saharan Africa (UNICEF, 2020; UNAIDS, 2019). Worse still, an estimated 2.1 million children are living with HIV/AIDS worldwide, with more than 80% of them living in sub-Saharan African countries (UNAIDS, 2019) .