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The human immunodeficiency virus is the agent responsible for the actual catastrophic and concerned pandemic disease of the world. AIDS is affecting an increase number of women in reproductive age. AII around the world, less than a half of the human immunodeficiency virus positive persons are women. Approximately, 600 000 children are infected each year in the world; most of them are infants who have received this terrible illness from their mothers during pregnancy, labor, childbirth or by breastfeeding. In 2004, 510 000 children under 15 years died as a consequence of this problem. From 1984 to 2004, it has been reported in Panama, 1 657 infected women with human immunodeficiency virus, being 71,4% of them between the ages of 20 and 49 years. Of all the deaths due to human immunodeficiency virus in those years (4 951),3,5% (162) were children under 15 years old. The most important means of HIV infection to infants is through the mother, in a mother-to-child transmission, which in our country were of 126 cases (3,7%) during the years of 1984 through 2004 Within the vertical transmission (mother-to-child transmission) of the human immunodeficiency virus, immunologic, virologic, obstetric and maternal factors exert their influence for the time being; however, it is very difficult to identify their individual contribution.
