Report on 2018–2019 pre-validation assessment of elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis in Ukraine

Overview

In 2018 and 2019, pre-validation assessments of elimination of mother-to-child transmission (‎EMTCT)‎ of HIV andsyphilis were conducted in Ukraine using 2015–2017 data for HIV and 2016–2018 for syphilis. The country hasachieved remarkable progress towards EMTCT of these infections, evident in the high uptake of antenatal care, testingand treatment for HIV,and testing for syphilis. For the cohort of children born in 2016, the HIV MTCT rate at two monthsafter birth was 1.9%, while at 18 months after birth the rate was 3.7%. At the national level, there are no data availableon treatment of syphilis in pregnant women. In 2018, the reported rate of congenital syphilis was 0.3/100 000 livebirths.The key programme gaps are low coverage of early infant diagnosis in HIV exposed infants, and in testing and treatmentof syphilis, which are not in line with WHO guidelines. Ukraine is currently not a candidate country for validation ofEMTCT but it has a very strong foundation and commitment to improve interventions for EMTCT of HIV and syphilis.This report provides key recommendations to strengthen EMTCT services and monitoring. WHO will continue to workwith MoH/UPHC, UNICEF and partners for strengthening the EMTCT programme aiming for validation in 2021.