Subject: CDC Summary Date: 01/5/94 (206 lines) From: National AIDS Info Clearinghouse Copyright 1993, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD AIDS Daily Summary January 5, 1994 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public service only. Providing this information does not constitute endorsement by the CDC, the CDC Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC Clearinghouse should be cited as the source of this information. Copyright 1993, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD "Anti-AIDS Campaign Aimed at Youth" Washington Post (01/05/94) P. A1 (Schwartz, John) At a news conference held yesterday, Health and Human Services Secretary Donna E. Shalala unveiled 13 new, federally-funded AIDS advertisements for radio and television. Although the knowledge and technology to prevent AIDS is available, said Shalala, "what we have lacked until now is the political will, because we have been too timid to talk openly about the prevention tools at our disposal." The public service announcements, commissioned by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, do candidly address the young target audience about AIDS issues. They use a variety of techniques to discourage sexual activity and warn against the dangers of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. One of the most frank of the PSAs is a television spot featuring a couple--of unspecified gender--about to have sex. A computer-animated, wrapped condom jumps out of a dresser drawer and makes its way across the room, where it hops into bed with the couple. The narrator relays the message: "It would be nice if latex condoms were automatic. But since they're not, using them should be." All four network stations have pledged to air the ads, although only Fox promised to do so without modification. The other stations demanded alterations or restricted broadcast times. The ad campaign has been applauded by some, condemned by others. One opponent, Eric Ueland, spokesman for the Senate Republican Policy Committee, criticized the project. "There's no correlation between ... explicit advertisements and a slowing of the AIDS rate," he said. "The New Frankness in AIDS Ads" Washington Post (01/05/94) P. A18 With more than 30,000 Washington, D.C.-area residents infected with the AIDS virus, the Washington Post greets the federal government's bolder and more frank AIDS prevention advertising campaign as a welcome effort. The editors agree with Health and Human Services Secretary Donna E. Shalala's statement that "every new HIV infection is a needless infection," especially since information about how to halt the spread of the disease is widespread. There's no mystery, they say; infection can be prevented through abstinence, with condoms as a backup. Yet, according to Dr. David Satcher of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, studies indicate that 72 percent of high school students report having sex by the time they graduate. If this is true, the Post says, then the time for candid discussion about condoms is long past due. Soon television viewers and radio listeners will be exposed to the new, frank condom ads. If the campaign yields a group of young adults who are persuaded of the critical need to protect themselves from the deadly AIDS disease, then, contend the editors of the Washington Post, an important, life-saving goal will have been achieved. "Using Condoms Can Be Hazardous" St. Louis Post-Dispatch (01/04/94) P. 11B (Thomas, Cal) The federal government's ambitious new campaign designed to encourage condom use as a means of avoiding AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases is actually a dangerous endeavor, asserts Cal Thomas, columnist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The campaign is "simplistic in origin, inaccurate in conception and highly dangerous in application because it will lull people into a false sense of security," he says. Thomas focuses on evidence supporting the theory that HIV particles can leak through latex condoms, which therefore are not nearly as effective as they are made to appear by the Centers for Disease Control. While the CDC says it is a myth that HIV can pass through a condom, Thomas says the real myth is that it cannot. One study found that "leakage of HIV-sized particles through latex condoms was detectable for as many as 29 of 89 used." If a 30-percent failure rate is considered "effective," wonders Thomas, what is considered ineffective? He also points out that most lab tests of condoms are conducted under conditions that are unlike real life. Therefore, the "consistent" and "correct" use of condoms promoted by the CDC is not applicable, because few real-life situations are consistent or correct. Finally, Thomas points out that the federal health agency's guidelines for condom use leave out a very important step: the proper storage of unused condoms at room temperature. Wallets and glove compartments do not qualify, he says, although these are often the places where men keep prophylactics. In life-or-death matters involving sex, HIV, and AIDS, Thomas contends that condom use is surely the wrong approach. Condoms, he says, can be hazardous to your health. "AIDS Counselor" Associated Press (01/04/94) (Connell, Christopher) Washington--Denise Stokes, who is featured in two of the federal government's new AIDS prevention advertisements, was diagnosed HIV-positive eight years ago at age 16. Today, as an lead counselor for Outreach Inc., she is dedicated to educating others about "how you get AIDS and how you may be able to prevent it." That includes her role in the condom public service announcements from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In one, Stokes says "I'm out here every week, talking to people about sex. And my message is simple: If you're going to have sex, a latex condom used consistently and correctly will prevent the spread of HIV.... I'll go anywhere to talk about latex condoms--even into your living room." Stokes is never identified as being infected herself. In the other ad, she says, "I see a lot of people my age who aren't ready. I tell them: Put off sex until you know more. Because having sex can pose some problems--like getting HIV. So just wait. It's a choice you can live with." The 24-year-old community activist from Atlanta spoke at Tuesday's unveiling of the new campaign, where she received a standing ovation. "India's AIDS Cases Double in 1993" Reuters (01/04/94) New Delhi--The number of AIDS infections in India doubled in 1993, said the news agency Press Trust of India, as quoted by the country's National AIDS Control Organization. According to the latest statistics released by the government-run organization, India reported 522 AIDS cases in 1993, spread across the 19 states and territories. Up until September 1992, the country had only 242 cases of the disease among 15 states and territories. The states of Maharashtra in western India and Tamil Nadu in the south represent more than half of the country's AIDS cases, according to P.R. Das, the chairman of the National AIDS Control Organization, as quoted by the agency. Das also noted that, except for small pockets in western and eastern India, the country has been seized by HIV. Experts predict that India could be one of the countries to confront a large-scale AIDS crisis in the future. "Rejection Is The Servant of AIDS" Los Angeles Times--Washington Edition (01/03/94) P. A11 (Kytle, Rayford) A tolerant, loving, and supportive environment built around young homosexuals could be the life-saving force that counteracts the problems which often place them at high risk for HIV infection, said Rayford Kytle, deputy director of the news office of the U.S. Public Health Service, in a recent speech to employees. Kytle, who has experienced first-hand the intolerant attitudes towards gays and lesbians, said that a negative attitude toward homosexuality by family and friends creates a confused young adult who, in trying to come to terms with sexuality, often succumbs to isolation and low self-esteem. These traits can lead to self-destructive behaviors--such as alcohol and drug abuse, suicide, and unsafe sex--which place them at risk for all sexually transmitted diseases, and especially for AIDS. Accepting a young homosexual and providing a supportive climate, on the other hand, could allow these youngsters to value themselves enough to want to stay healthy and live fulfilling, responsible lives. Kytle said homosexuals need community role models who promote healthy and responsible choices by gay youth. They also need to be told that responsibility and irresponsibility does not depend on sexual orientation any more than it does on race, religion, or gender. "Elton John Calls for End to AIDS Charity Fight" United Press International (01/04/94) Los Angeles--Crooner Elton John, chairman of an AIDS charity organization bearing his name, on Tuesday called for an end to squabbling over two AIDS fundraisers scheduled for the same evening in the Los Angeles area. Responding to statements made from the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), which accused John of violating "the unwritten rules of charitable fundraising," the singer urged the organization to "focus on the vital issues involved with the fight against AIDS." AHF, which has for the past four years held Academy Award night events, contends that the unwritten rules dictate that no two organizations with the same cause hold functions on the same date in the same area. John's organization began its Oscar night benefit last year. AHF's president, Michael Weinstein, urged John in a letter to reconsider his event, saying AHF "is no rival to Elton John in name identification, and your event would receive substantial media attention as a result." John Scott, president and executive director of the singer's foundation, says the events should not detract from one another. "There cannot be enough fundraisers to support the fight against AIDS on Oscar night or any other night." "HemaCare Files Investigational New Drug (IND) Application With FDA to Begin U.S. Phase III Clinical Trials of Immupath for the Treatment of AIDS" Healthwire (01/03/94) Los Angeles--HemaCare Corp. has submitted an Investigational New Drug application with the Food and Drug Administration to initiate Phase III clinical trials of Immupath, a promising AIDS therapy. Immupath, a biopharmaceutical derived from the plasma of asymptomatic HIV-positive donors, uses passive hyperimmune therapy to neutralize the virus in AIDS patients. Completed Phase I/II clinical studies demonstrated the ability of the drug to improve immune competency and to lengthen survival in certain categories of AIDS patients. Immupath, which HemaCare has been testing in humans since 1991, was also proven to be non-toxic. Joshua Levy, HemaCare's medical director and leading investigator in the Immupath trials, expects the FDA to respond without delay to the request for expanded studies.