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Home > Diseases
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Paediatric HIV

Saving children’s lives by developing new treatments to meet their needs

Home > Diseases
paediatric-hiv icon

Paediatric HIV

Saving children’s lives by developing new treatments to meet their needs

  • Overview
  • Facts
  • Projects & achievements
  • Target product profile
  • Advocacy toolkit

We developed an easy-to-administer, strawberry-flavoured combination of four antiretroviral medicines to meet the needs of the youngest children, who are at the highest risk of dying without treatment. This new treatment was approved in South Africa in 2022 – the first country globally to grant regulatory approval for the 4-in-1 – followed by approvals in Mali, Uganda, and Kenya in early 2023.

The needs of children with HIV have long been neglected. While R&D efforts have succeeded in developing life-saving diagnosis and treatment innovations for adults, innovation for children has lagged far behind.

Until recently, the only treatments available for babies and kids were bitter-tasting, difficult to dose, and required refrigeration – making them unsuitable for children and their caregivers. Thankfully, new paediatric formulations are finally becoming available after decades of poor options. Our work is a key part of this revolution in paediatric HIV diagnosis and treatment.

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of children with HIV will die before their second birthday without treatment
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children are living with HIV
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children receive lifesaving treatment
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‘The initial treatment was difficult to administer because of their bitter taste. Many times, Emmanuel would spit the medication instead of swallowing.’

Pamela Akoth, stepmother of Emmanuel, living with HIV and treated at the Lea Toto Kariobangi site in Nairobi, Kenya.
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What we have achieved

Our research is helping countries replace older, difficult–to–use, and sometimes ineffective formulations and scale up new, optimum treatments for young children. 

Read more in our Annual Report
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Treatment Delivered

Super-booster therapy

New hope for children co-infected with HIV and TB. Drugs used to treat tuberculosis can interfere with HIV treatment, reducing its effectiveness. A successful study with our South African partners paved the way for better treatment for children living with both diseases.

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Treatment Delivered

4-in-1 (ABC/3TC/LPV/r)

A strawberry-flavoured, ‘4-in-1’ treatment for children. The 4-in-1 meets the treatment needs of the youngest children living with HIV. The combination of four antiretrovirals in easy-to-administer, heat-stable, strawberry-flavoured granules has been approved in South Africa

Registration & access

2-in-1 LPV/r pellets and ABC/3TC or AZT/3TC

One of the largest paediatric HIV cohorts in the world. Our implementation study with over 1,000 children in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania was designed to help improve uptake of newer treatments for kids.

What we are doing for children living with HIV

Our engagement goes well beyond drug development alone. Through a series of partnerships, we are working to ensure improved treatments for kids are rolled out where they are needed most. 

Paediatric HIV news & resources

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News
4 Mar 2025

2024 R&D programmes in review: HIV

Publications
24 Sep 2024

HAT Platform Newsletter No. 23

Publications
11 Jul 2024

DNDi 2023 Annual Report

Statements
21 May 2024

DNDi’s briefing note for 77th World Health Assembly

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Making medical history for neglected patients

We develop urgently needed treatments for neglected patients and ensure they’re affordable, available, and adapted to the communities who need them

Young boy sitting on a hospital bed being examined by a nurse

Chagas disease

Causes heart and vital organ damage, after people are bitten by blood-sucking bugs

We delivered the first-ever treatment for children; now we’re searching for new drug candidates and working to boost access to care

Patient medical examination

Cryptococcal meningitis

Without treatment, deadly for thousands of people with advanced HIV

We’re working to improve access to life-saving treatments and developing an easier-to-use formulation

Girl with skin lesions on her nose

Cutaneous leishmaniasis

Leaves disfiguring, life-long scars that lead to severe social stigma

We’re working to develop safer, shorter treatments for this disabling disease

Doctor with young patient in hospital setting

Dengue

Rapidly spreading climate-sensitive disease with no specific treatment

We’re building a global partnership with dengue-endemic countries to develop a first treatment

Father walking in rural village with a cane and holding his son's hand

Filaria: river blindness

Lead to unbearable itching, disfiguring skin lesions, and even blindness

We’re working to develop a safe, effective, and affordable drug for the prevention and treatment of this debilitating disease

Young man standing in the street

Hepatitis C

Millions are left without treatment even though effective drugs exist

We’ve delivered a treatment as simple, safe, and effective as the best drugs available today – at a fraction of the cost 

Woman standing in front of her door house in a rural village in Sudan

Mycetoma

Often ends in amputation​, after people get infected from stepping on a thorn

We conducted the world’s first trial for an alternative to current treatments, which are toxic and difficult to administer

Mother holding her baby in her arms smiling

Paediatric HIV

Without treatment, half of children die before their second birthday

We’ve developed a strawberry-flavoured treatment to meet the needs of children long neglected by the global HIV response

Healthcare workers in a hospital

Pandemic Preparedness

The COVID-19 pandemic intensified global health inequalities

We’re bringing together partners and accelerating research to prepare for future viral pandemics in low-resource settings

Doctor diagnosing a man in a village with his hands on the man's neck

Sleeping sickness

Transmitted by the bite of a tsetse fly and causes severe neurological disorders

We delivered a revolutionary new drug to replace toxic treatments, and have ongoing trials to eliminate this disease

Girl looking over a fence

Visceral leishmaniasis

Is one of the world’s biggest parasitic killers, spread by the bites of sandflies

We’re working to develop a new generation of treatments to replace drugs that are painful, ineffective, and cause side effects

Chagas disease

Cryptococcal meningitis

Cutaneous leishmaniasis

Dengue

Filaria: river blindness

Hepatitis C

Mycetoma

Paediatric HIV

Pandemic Preparedness

Sleeping sickness

Visceral leishmaniasis

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