Subject: CDC NCHSTP Daily News Update Date: Mon Feb 9 07:31:05 PST 1998 (234 lines) From: National AIDS Info Clearinghouse Copyright 1998, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD CDC NCHSTP Daily News Update February 9, 1998 The CDC National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention provides the following information as a public service only. Providing synopses of key scientific articles and lay media reports on HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted diseases and tuberculosis does not constitute CDC endorsement. This daily update also includes information from CDC and other government agencies, such as background on Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) articles, fact sheets, press releases and announcements. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC NCHSTP Daily News Update should be cited as the source of the information. Copyright 1998, Information Inc., Bethesda, MD. HEADLINES --------- GENERAL MEDIA "Sex Partners Often Silent About H.I.V." "Short Therapy Can Prevent TB" "HIV-Positive Women Often Have Reproductive Health Hospitalizations" "Health Notes: Molecule May Inhibit HIV" "Brazil-- Health: An AIDS Epidemic Rages Behind [Brazilian Prisons]" "New Salick Company Agrees to Set Up Cancer, AIDS Clinics With Montefiore" "UK Mulling Life Sentence for Spreading AIDS" "Overdose Mortality for HIV-Positive Drug Users High After Release From Prison" "AZT Trials Pose Difficult Breast-Feeding Dilemma" "Gallo's Dance With Industry" **************************************************************** GENERAL MEDIA **************************************************************** "Sex Partners Often Silent About H.I.V." New York Times (02/09/98) P. A10 New research, led by Dr. Michael Stein of Brown University Medical School, indicates that four out of every 10 HIV-positive individuals studied did not inform their sexual partners about their condition. The study, which surveyed 203 HIV-positive patients at Boston City Hospital and Rhode Island Hospital between 1994 and 1996, also found that approximately two-thirds of the individuals did not use condoms. According to the study, reported in the current issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, people with only one partner were three times more likely than those with multiple partners to disclose their HIV status to their partners. The researchers also found that 41 percent of the subjects said that they contracted HIV via the use of injection drugs, 20 percent were men who said they became infected through contact with same-sex partners, and 39 percent reported contracting HIV through heterosexual contact. Stein noted that previous studies conducted with gay men had found similar results, particularly the likelihood of disclosure to one partner and the lower likelihood of disclosure among those who had multiple sexual partners. He asserted, "People are not ignorant of these subjects. This is a matter of personal responsibility." "Short Therapy Can Prevent TB" United Press International (02/06/98); Susman, Ed At the Fifth Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections, Dr. Fred Gordi, chief of infectious diseases at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and colleagues reported that a new two-month, two-drug regimen is as effective as the standard 12-month regimen in preventing tuberculosis in AIDS patients. Gordin's research partners included scientists from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and AIDS clinical trial groups sponsored by the National Institutes of Health and the Pan-American Health Organization. Over a six-year period, the researchers studied 1,500 subjects with confirmed cases of AIDS and TB, and found that a two-month therapy of rifampin and pyrazinamide and a 12-month isoniazid regimen had about the same rate of TB cases and deaths three years after taking the preventative treatment. The short-course treatment also appeared to produce fewer side effects. Gordin noted: "The success of the program may allow tuberculosis prevention programs in areas of the world where this is not possible now." "HIV-Positive Women Often Have Reproductive Health Hospitalizations" Reuters Health Information Services (02/06/98) In the January issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, researchers report that HIV-positive women have a greater rate of hospital admissions for reproductive health conditions, both before and after they become aware of their HIV status. Dr. Howard Minkoff of the State University of New York Health Science Center in Brooklyn and colleagues studied 292 HIV-positive women, analyzing the types of inpatient care they received. The group found that 226 of the women were admitted to the hospital, with nearly 70 percent receiving reproductive health care (obstetric or gynecologic) services. The scientists reported that while the percentage of women seeking hospital treatment for reproductive health treatment declined as HIV infection progressed, the numbers were still substantial. "Health Notes: Molecule May Inhibit HIV" United Press International (02/09/98); Wasowicz, Linda Laboratory tests of Immunex's drug Leukine suggest that it may be successful in preventing HIV from entering macrophages, immune system cells that circulate in the blood and tissue. According to Mike Widmer of Immunex, Leukine appears to increase the number of CD4 T cells and may also help to reduce viral load. "Brazil--Health: An AIDS Epidemic Rages Behind [Brazilian Prisons]" IPS Wire (02/06/98) Ricardo Marins, an epidemiologist at the University of Campinas, claims that AIDS is the leading cause of death among Brazilian inmates, killing more persons than violence or tuberculosis. However, there are no official statistics to prove this. Recent data indicates that 17.3 percent of inmates in Carandiru--Brazil's largest correctional facility--are infected with HIV, while the rate at Sorocaba in Sao Paulo State is 12.5 percent. The Health Ministry estimates that 15 percent of inmates are infected with HIV. Unsterile injection drug paraphernalia and sex between inmates appear to be the main modes of transmission; however, overcrowding may also create an ideal breeding ground for HIV transmission, according to the United Nations AIDS Program. Correctional officials are beginning to respond to the epidemic; the Sao Paulo State government began distributing 100,000 condoms a month in its facilities during 1996. The Brazilian government also initiated nine HIV/AIDS prevention projects last year that include condom distribution programs in correctional facilities. "New Salick Company Agrees to Set Up Cancer, AIDS Clinics With Montefiore" Wall Street Journal (02/09/98) P. B7; Winslow, Ron Bentley Health Care., a new company headed by cancer-care entrepreneur Bernard Salick, will develop a network of outpatient AIDS and cancer care centers in conjunction with New York's Montefiore Medical Center. The company will invest $100 million in the centers, which will include three cancer centers, a separate AIDS center, and several AIDS clinics in metropolitan New York. Salick eventually envisions a multi-million dollar network of centers and clinics throughout New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. The plan is an attempt to manage chronically ill patients in a cost-effective manner. Noting that the advent of protease inhibitors has extended the life expectancy of HIV-positive patients dramatically, Salick said the shift of AIDS from a fatal to a chronic disease makes it a good candidate for outpatient management. "UK Mulling Life Sentence for Spreading AIDS" Reuters (02/07/98) The British government is deciding whether to enact a law that would make it punishable by life imprisonment to deliberately pass on a life-threatening illness. The new law would include HIV, as well as salmonella and Legionnaires' disease. The new measure comes in the wake of several incidents in which people were jabbed with syringes containing HIV. "Overdose Mortality for HIV-Positive Drug Users High After Release From Prison" Reuters Health Information Services (02/06/98) In the current issue of the British Medical Journal, S.R. Seaman of the Institute of Public Health in Cambridge and colleagues report that HIV-positive drug users have a greatly increased risk of overdosing during the first two weeks after release from a correctional facility. The research team studied 316 HIV-positive injection drug users at Edinburgh Hospital, 238 of whom had spent time in a correctional facility. The study found that 33 HIV-positive patients died before developing AIDS, including 20 who died from drug overdoses. The team estimated that the risk of death for released HIV-positive inmates with drug habits was eight times higher in the first two weeks after release than it was during the next 10 weeks after release. "AZT Trials Pose Difficult Breast-Feeding Dilemma" AIDS Alert--International (02/98) Vol. 13, No. 2, P. 2 Researchers in developing nations face a dilemma concerning breast-feeding by HIV-positive mothers: while antiretroviral treatments may prevent perinatal infection of infants, breast-feeding may expose a child to HIV. Many mothers in these nations may not have access to powdered milk or safe drinking water to use in formula. Dr. Hoosen Coovadia, of the University of Natal in South Africa, explained: "Pediatricians have fought for more than two decades to promote breast-feeding, and the breast-feeding code is very strong in our country, so it is not a gain we want to give up lightly." Breast-feeding provides infants with the necessary resources to combat other diseases; the dilemma lies in whether this added benefit outweighs the need to protect the child from HIV exposure. Few studies have been conducted to assess the impact of breast-feeding on HIV transmission. Coovadia noted: "We must not only look at the biological issue, but the social and economic implication, such as the impact of the cost of bottle feeding." To that end, the Wellcome Trust in London recently put out bids for the creation of an African reproductive health center that would, among other things, study the impact of breast-feeding in HIV-positive mothers. "Gallo's Dance With Industry" TechGazatte (02/98) Vol. 1, No. 2, P. 16; Metzinger, Bob Renowned AIDS expert Robert C. Gallo is trying to strike a balance between business and scientific advances as director of the Institute of Human Virology (IHV). The IHV--created as a partnership between the state of Maryland, the city of Baltimore, and the University of Maryland and its medical system--studies many viral infections, including hepatitis, herpes, and a leukemia virus, but focuses on HIV. The IHV also serves as a specialized care clinic for more than 1,400 HIV-positive individuals. Within its first 15 months of existence, the IHV has become a leader in AIDS research. "The science is going in leaps," Gallo noted. "We've already got a dozen patents ... about one a month." Currently, Gallo is trying to form an alliance between the IHV and an as-yet-unnamed drug company to produce IHV-developed products and create a long-range funding mechanism for the Institute. ***************************************************************** The AIDSNews Mailing List is maintained by the CDC National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention. Regular postings include the CDC NCHSTP Daily News Update, conference announcements, clinical trials information, current funding opportunities, and selected MMWR articles. To SUBSCRIBE, send the command "subscribe aidsnews firstname lastname" to the address listproc@aspensys.com. To UNSUBSCRIBE, send the command "unsubscribe aidsnews" to the address listproc@aspensys.com. 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