Joanna Wypior - All Headline News Staff Reporter

Many children of HIV positive women aren't born infected, however, they cannot be tested for the virus for 15 to 18 months. Many mothers with the virus abandon their children with believing their babies will soon be dead. Other mothers are drug users and simply cannot take proper care of their children.

Russian law requires abandoned children to spend their first three years in "baby houses," where they are taught to walk, talk and interact with others.

Since the collapse of communism, AIDS has been spreading through Russia at a devastating pace. The rapid spread is due to weak anti-drug and prevention programs, infected needles and sexual transmission.