Abstract:
Objective: Pediatric antiretroviral therapy (ART) for children with HIV (CHIV) must be dosed appropriately for
children’s changing weights as they grow. To inform accurate estimates of ART formulations and doses needed, we
described weight‑for‑age distributions among CHIV on ART in the IeDEA global pediatric collaboration between
2004 and 2016, using data from six regions (East, West, Central, and Southern Africa, Asia–Pacific, and Central/South
America and the Caribbean).
Results: Overall, 59,862 children contributed to the analysis. Age and weight data were available from 530,080 clini‑
cal encounters for girls and 537,894 for boys. For each one‑year age stratum from 0 to 15 years, we calculated the
proportion of children in each of the weight bands designated by the World Health Organization as relevant to pedi‑
atric ART formulations: 0 to < 3 kg, 3 to < 6 kg, 6 to < 10 kg, 10 to < 14 kg, 14 to < 20 kg, 20 to < 25 kg, 25 to < 30 kg,
30 to < 35 kg, 35 to < 40 kg, 40 to < 45 kg, 45 to < 50 kg, 50 to < 55 kg, 55 to < 60 kg, and ≥ 60 kg. Data are reported
for the entire cohort, as well as stratified by sex and IeDEA region, calendar year of ART use, and duration on ART at
time of assessment (< 12 or ≥ 12 months), provided in data tables. These data are critical to improve the accuracy of
forecasting and procurement of pediatric ART formulations as the pediatric HIV epidemic and pediatric HIV treatment
strategies evolve.