Mother-to-child transmission of HIV is the spread of HIV from a woman living with HIV to her child during pregnancy, childbirth (also called labor and delivery), or breastfeeding (through breast milk). Mother-to-child transmission of HIV is also called perinatal transmission of HIV.
The use of HIV medicines and other strategies have helped to lower the rate of mother-to-child transmission of HIV to 1% or less in the United States and Europe. (HIV medicines are called antiretrovirals.)