Denmark officially recognised as having ended mother-to-child transmission of HIV and Syphilis.

Denmark has been officially recognised as having eliminated mother-to-child transmission of HIV and Syphilis according to a press release issued by the World Health Organization on 27 February 2026. In doing so it becomes the first member of the European Union and the third European country to achieve this status (behind Moldova and Belarus, both of which were confirmed as having ended mother-to-child transmission of both diseases in 2016). 

Flag of Denmark. Tomasz Sienicki/Wikimedia Commons.

The World Health Organization is aiming for all countries to achieve the triple elimination of mother-to-child transmission of three critical diseases, HIV, Syphilis, and Hepatitis B, although to date only a single country has passed this milestone, the Maldives in October 2025. Denmark's progress makes it one of 23 countries to have ended mother-to-child transmission of at least one of these diseases, alongside Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Belarus, Belize, Bermuda, Brazil, Botswana, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Dominica, Jamaica, Malaysia, Maldives, Montserrat, Namibia, Oman, Republic of Moldova, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sri Lanka, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Thailand.

The confirmation of Denmark's status comes following assessments by the World Health Organization's Regional Validation Committee for Europe, and Global Validation Advisory Committee in 2025. In order to be confirmed, it was necessary to demonstrate that 95% of all pregnant women in Denmark were tested for the diseases, and that new infant infections were below 50 in 100 0000 births. Denmark currently has 5950 people living with HIV, with less than 0.1% of pregnant women affected. It is possible to completely suppress the disease with antiretroviral treatments, preventing development of symptoms and all forms of transmission, including mother-to-child. In 2024, Denmark reported 626 cases of Syphilis, 524 in men and 102 in women; infections with this disease can be eliminated with antibiotics. Denmark is still working towards ending mother-to-child transmission of Hepatitis B.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus, or HIV, is a form of Lentivirus which causes infections in Humans, spread through sexual intercourse or exchange of blood. Notably, the Virus infects the cells of the Human immune system, where it is hard for that immune system to attack, and eventually leads to a breakdown of the immune system known as AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome), during which the body becomes vulnerable to a wide range of infections, including many by micro-organisms which are not usually pathogenic. 

Untreated, HIV invariably leads to AIDS, and AIDS is invariably fatal, but, as with Syphilis, HIV infections can go through long phases of dormancy, leaving infected people unaware that they have the disease. Neither an effective vaccine nor a cure for HIV has yet been developed, however, it is possible to suppress the infection with a combination of anti-viral drugs, allowing patients to lead relatively normal lives, as long as their supply of antivirals is not interrupted. Children born to mothers with HIV are not automatically infected, as the Virus is usually unable to cross the placenta, but there is a high chance of infection during birth if the mother is not receiving treatment.

Scanning electron microscope image of an HIV virion. Hockley et al. (1988). 

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the Spirochaete Bacterium Treponema pallidum. The symptoms of Syphilis can be variable, and it can go through long periods of dormancy, making the disease difficult to diagnose without modern testing methods. Syphilis infection in pregnant women leads to a raised risk of miscarriage, and infants born with the disease are prone to physical deformities, damage to the liver and spleen, and neurological problems. Syphilis can be treated with a range of antibiotics, including penicillin, although the development of a vaccine has proved difficult.

Scanning electron microscope image of Treponema pallidum, the causative agent of Syphilis. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Wikimedia Commons.

See also...

Maldives becomes the first ever nation to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of three critical diseases.

The Republic of Maldives has become the first ever country to achieve the end of mother-to-child transmission of Hepatitis B, HIV, and Syphilis, according to a press release issued by the World Health Organization on 13 October 2025. Mother-to-child transmission of HIV and Syphilis in the country was achieved in 2019, with the conformation this month that mother-to-child transmission of Hepatitis B has been eliminated making the Maldives the world's first county to achieve 'triple-elimination' of these diseases.

A mother is using traditional Maldivian cooking utensils to prepare a meal for her children. Ibrahim Asad/WHO Maldives.

Maldives forms part of the WHO Southeast Asia Region, which (confusingly) also includes most South Asian countries, and is based in New Delhi. It is estimated that across this region, more than 24 000 pregnant women were infected with Syphilis, an and over 8000 babies were born with the congenital form of the disease. In the same year, more than 25 000 pregnant women received treatment to prevent them passing on HIV to their babies. Figures relating to mother-to-child transmission of Hepatitis B are not available, but more than 24 million people across the region are living with the disease.

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the Spirochaete Bacterium Treponema pallidum. The symptoms of Syphilis can be variable, and it can go through long periods of dormancy, making the disease difficult to diagnose without modern testing methods. Syphilis infection in pregnant women leads to a raised risk of miscarriage, and infants born with the disease are prone to physical deformities, damage to the liver and spleen, and neurological problems. Syphilis can be treated with a range of antibiotics, including penicillin, although the development of a vaccine has proved difficult.

Scanning electron microscope image of Treponema pallidum, the causative agent of Syphilis. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Wikimedia Commons.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus, or HIV, is a form of Lentivirus which causes infections in Humans, spread through sexual intercourse or exchange of blood. Notably, the Virus infects the cells of the Human immune system, where it is hard for that immune system to attack, and eventually leads to a breakdown of the immune system known as AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome), during which the body becomes vulnerable to a wide range of infections, including many by micro-organisms which are not usually pathogenic. Untreated, HIV invariably leads to AIDS, and AIDS is invariably fatal, but, as with Syphilis, HIV infections can go through long phases of dormancy, leaving infected people unaware that they have the disease. Neither an effective vaccine nor a cure for HIV has yet been developed, however, it is possible to suppress the infection with a combination of anti-viral drugs, allowing patients to lead relatively normal lives, as long as their supply of antivirals is not interrupted. Children born to mothers with HIV are not automatically infected, as the Virus is usually unable to cross the placenta, but there is a high chance of infection during birth if the mother is not receiving treatment.

Scanning electron microscope image of an HIV virion. Hockley et al. (1988). 

Hepatitis B is Viral infection of Humans, primarily targeting the cells of the liver. It can be transmitted through sexual intercourse, blood-to-blood infections, or from mother-to-child during pregnancy. Hepatitis B is seldom fatal, but untreated it can cause recurring bouts of debilitating nausea, accompanied by jaundice, vomiting, stomach cramps, and exhaustion. Untreated Hepatitis B can leave patients vulnerable to cirrhosis and liver cancer, which can prove fatal. Not all people infected with Hepatitis B ever develop symptoms, though children born with the infection are both more prone to symptoms and more prone to severe symptoms. An effective vaccine has been available for Hepatitis B since 1991. Most adults infected with Hepatitis B fight of the infection on their own, although it can be treated with a range of anti-viral drugs.

Hepatitis B Virus cells. Graham Beards/Wikimedia Commons.

Maldives has achieved its 'triple elimination' through a combination of extensive free anti-natal care, testing for all three diseases, and vaccinations against Hepatitis B, with around 95% of pregnant women in the country thought to have been reached. These policies form part of a system of free universal healthcare for all residents of the islands, including migrants, with over 10% of the country's GDP being invested in healthcare. 

See also...

Leptospirosis kills eight in FIji.

Eight people have now been confirmed dead in an outbreak of Leptospirosis  in Fiji that began in January this year (2019). Five people died in the January-April period, with a further three deaths reported over the Easter Period (19-22 April). At least 400 more people have been infected with the disease, which is principally contracted from animal urine, and can reach epidemic proportions when flooding occurs, as has happened in Fiji this year.

Flooding in Labasa, Fiji, in January 2019. The Fiji Times.

Leptospirosis is caused by a number of Bacteria in the genus Leptospira, Spirochaete Bacteria related to Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme Disease) and Treponema pallidum (Syphilis). It typically manifests as a bout of severe fever, followed by several days of apparent recovery, then a second bout of fever which may be accompanied by meningitis and/or acute liver failure. The disease can be encountered worldwide, but in developed countries is rare except in those who work with livestock. However in areas of developing countries with poor sanitation outbreaks of Leptospirosisis can reach epidemic proportions during periods of flooding,

 SEM image of Leptospira interrogans, one of the causative agents of Leptospirosis. Janice Carr/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Center for Infectious Diseases/Wikimedia Commons.

See also...

Follow Sciency Thoughts on Facebook.

Leptospirosis kills fifteen in flood-hit Kerala State, India.

Fifteen people have been confirmed dead, eight of them in the past two days, in an outbreak of Leptospirosis in Kerala State, India. A total of forty cases of the disease, which is spread when water laced with the urine of infected animals (typically Rodents) gets into open wounds on Humans, have been reported, the majority of them (28) in Kozhikode District, with cases also reported in Alappuzha, Thrissur and Pathanamthitta. The disease is common in India and other tropical countries following flooding, such as that which has hit Kerala during this year's exceptional Monsoon rains.

Patients in the fever ward at Kozhikode Medical College Hospital. Deccan Chronicle.

Leptospirosis is caused by a number of Bacteria in the genus Leptospira, Spirochaete Bacteria related to Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme Disease) and Treponema pallidum (Syphilis). It typically manifests as a bout of severe fever, followed by several days of apparent recovery, then a second bout of fever which may be accompanied by meningitis and/or acute liver failure. The disease can be encountered worldwide, but in developed countries is rare except in those who work with livestock. However in areas of developing countries with poor sanitation outbreaks of Leptospirosisis can reach epidemic proportions during periods of flooding,

SEM image of Leptospira interrogans, one of the causative agents of Leptospirosis. Janice Carr/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Center for Infectious Diseases/Wikimedia Commons.

See also...

Follow Sciency Thoughts on Facebook.