Bibliographic Info
GuidelineWHO recommendations on maternal health: guidelines approved by the WHO Guidelines Review Committee, second edition. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2025
Year of Publication2023
Issuing InstitutionWorld Health Organization
Recommendation
Status
Updated
Context specific recommendation
Only in specific contexts
Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) containing tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) should be offered as an additional prevention choice for pregnant women at substantial risk of HIV infection as part of combination prevention approaches
Notes and Remarks
- 1.This recommendation has been integrated from the WHO guideline on when to start antiretroviral therapy and on pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV (2015), where it is considered to be a strong recommendation based on high-quality evidence . The evidence and further guidance related to the recommendation can be found in this guideline.
- 2.“Substantial risk” is provisionally defined as HIV incidence greater than 3 per 100 person-years in the absence of PrEP, but individual risk varies within this group depending on individual behaviour and the characteristics of sexual partners. Local epidemiological evidence concerning risk factors and HIV incidence should be used to inform implementation.
- 3.Thresholds for offering PrEP may vary depending on a variety of considerations, including resources, feasibility and demand.
- 4.The level of protection is strongly correlated with adherence.
- 5.Detailed evidence and guidance related to this recommendation can be found in the 2015 guideline , available at: http://www.who.int/hiv/pub/guidelines/earlyrelease-arv/en/