[amcondron]

Hi there

My husband and I have decided we will adopt from South Africa but we're not ready to start our homestudy for another year (I'm giving birth to my first in February).

We attended an information session on adoption and were told that HIV rates are very high in South Africa and that there can be no guarantees a child is not infected with HIV even after they are tested mulitple times in the first few months of life.

Is it true that a baby can have HIV and it may not show up in a test for 12-15 months?

I'm not prepared to adopt a child with HIV and I want to be sure I fully understand what I would be getting myself into.

I've not been having any luck researching on the net - there is not much information out there.

I would love to hear from others about their experience adopting and specifically how you decided whether or not to risk adopting a 3 month old child that may be very sick.

I've heard from others who have adopted from SA but no one mentions HIV. Is it not a concern? Am I not aware of a more accurate test for newborns? Plesae help!!!


Thanks,

Andrea