The Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) Center at Asir Central Hospital has made a breakthrough, in terms of helping HIV-positive parents have 18 pregnancies, and thus delivery of HIV-negative babies. The parents were put under close follow-up to avoid transmission of the virus before and after conception, by means of fully controlling the level of virus activity in the blood of both parents and the dose of medication given to the patient. This begins prior to the conception, using the ICSI procedure to complete pregnancy, and throughout the conception period. The follow-up also continues after delivery, by giving specific medications intravenously to the mother as well as antiviral drugs to the baby for six weeks. Then the baby will be put under observation for two years. Thanks to Allah, the results of the follow-up visits to the clinic showed negative for all babies.
It is noteworthy that the clinic is reckoned one of the distinctive clinics in the Kingdom, and runs by a qualified medical team, headed by two consultants in communicable diseases, Dr. Tariq Al-Azraqi and Dr. Muhammad Al-Raie. There are 242 AIDS patients recorded at the clinic. This clinic, which is completely separate from the hospital, is staffed by physicians, nurses and technicians, performing duties in confidentiality and privacy. The clinic provides some health services, including sampling and examination, in addition to a special pharmacy. Moreover, the clinic organizes awareness activities at public places and shopping malls, using a vehicle specially prepared for this purpose.