Two-year-old infected with HIV

A two-year-old boy in Guiyang, capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province, was confirmed to have been infected with HIV, and his parents blamed the infection on a hospital, thecover.cn reported. Experts from the National Health Commission plan to investigate the cause of the infection.

The infant, going by the pseudonym of Xiao Tian, was stuck by a piece of apple on Oct 28, 2017, when he was one-year-old. His parents took him to Guizhou Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital.

After being treated for an hour, the infant was sent to ICU. On Nov 21, Xiao Tian was discharged from the hospital. Xiao Tian's mom Tang found his breathing abnormal, so she brought him back to the hospital on Nov 23. This time, Xiao Tian was kept in ICU until Dec 7.

The infant was treated with bronchofibroscope, tracheal intubation and blood transfusion in the hospital. But when the boy did not show signs of recovery, the parents transferred him to Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University.

On Dec 7, the day Xiao Tian was received by Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, his blood test showed him HIV positive.

Tang found it difficult to believe. "We did blood test when we took him to Guiyang Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, and the result was negative. Then he was kept in ICU the whole time. How could he be infected with HIV?"

Tang and her husband did HIV antibody test soon after and the results were negative.

A doctor said the result was a preliminary one and suggested them to test again when Xiao Tian's condition turned stable.

Xiao Tian was discharged from Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University on March 15 but his recovery was slow.

Since May, he had been having low fever. On June 1, his blood test again showed HIV positive after a test conducted by the Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou Medical University. On June 27, he was again diagnosed to be infected with HIV/AIDS by Guiyang No 5 People's Hospital.

"HIV can be transmitted from blood, sex and mother to child," said Tang. "He's only two, so he can't be infected through sex. We parents don't have AIDS, so the only way to get it is through blood."

She suspected the infection may have happened at Guizhou Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital.

The parents reported the case to Guiyang Health and Family Planning Commission on June 30. To their surprise, they were told on July 13 that the blood station and Guizhou Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital were in the clear.

They then reported the case to another institution.

Now the National Health Commission will send experts to join the investigation, according to Guiyang Health and Family Planning Commission. The investigation will last about 10 days.

"We hope the truth can come out soon. If the hospital is accountable, we will take responsibility. If not, we want to be declared innocent," said a staff member from Guizhou Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital.