Dr, My wife was diagnosed HIv+ in december 2000, and told in mid January that her viral load was 361,000. My wife gave birth in early September and I was wondering if you could hazzard a guess at what her viral load would have been when she gave birth. She was not on any treatment prior to giving birth as her status was unknown. My daughter was tested at about 9 months and although her mothers antibodies were present no antigen was detected. She will be tested again at twelve months, if no antigen present then is she clear? Thank You

Can't say for sure, but it is likely that her viral load would have been in the same range during pregnancy. In general mothers antibodies clear by 1 year after birth, all in some cases they can linger. Many experts would consider using PCR or viral load testing in babies who have positive antibodies from the mom to rule out HIV infection.