Is Viread Safe for Babies?

The antiretroviral drug Viread (tenofovir), being considered as a means to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmissions, has produced no increase in birth defects, according to one analysis. Information gathered by the Antiretroviral Pregnancy Registry, a voluntary reporting system, indicated that rates of congenital abnormalities in children born to women using tenofovir were comparable to those in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's birth defects surveillance system and to those associated with other antiretroviral drugs. Animal studies have shown no fetal risk caused by Viread, but few human studies have been done. Scientists are evaluating Viread's efficacy and safety as a preventive measure for mother-to-child transmissions of HIV and of hepatitis B.