Subject: CDC AIDS Daily Summary for Date: Mon May 1 07:01:00 PDT 2000 (206 lines) From: National AIDS Info Clearinghouse Copyright 2000, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD CDC HIV/STD/TB Prevention News Update Monday, May 1, 2000 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 HIV/STD/TB Prevention News Update should be cited as the source of the information. Contact the sources of the articles abstracted below for full texts of the articles. HEADLINES PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS "Bacterial Pneumonia in Hospitalized Patients With HIV Infection" GENERAL MEDIA "US Calls Spread of AIDS Globally a Security Threat" "China Reports Rise in Drug Addiction" "Specialist Sees Needle Law as a Lifesaver" "Scientists Hold Out Hope for Vaccine" "DuPont Pharmaceuticals Expand Access to HIV Drug" "News of TB Outbreak Catches the Homeless Unaware" "Frank Drug Talk Shocks Schools Boss" "Killer Rubber" INFORMATION FROM THE CENTERS OF DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION The HIV/AIDS Connection *************************************************************** PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS *************************************************************** "Bacterial Pneumonia in Hospitalized Patients With HIV Infection" Chest Online (www.chestjournal.org) (04/00) Vol. 117, No. 4, P. 1017; Afessa, Bekele; Green, Bethany New research reveals that 9 percent of nearly 600 HIV-infected patients who were hospitalized between 1995 and 1998 were diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia. Compared to patients who did not have the infection, those with bacterial pneumonia had lower CD4 lymphocyte counts, higher APACHE II (acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II) scores, longer hospital stays, and higher case-fatality rates. The majority of the bacterial infections were community-acquired infections, most frequently Pseudomonas aeruginosa (32 admissions) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (22 admissions). **************************************************************** GENERAL MEDIA **************************************************************** "US Calls Spread of AIDS Globally a Security Threat" Boston Globe Online (www.boston.com/globe) (05/01/00) P. A12; Richwine, Lisa The White House announced Sunday that the global spread of HIV constitutes a national security threat. Spokesmen for President Clinton and the National Security Council noted that the disease has hit some countries so hard that it could endanger economies, military establishments, and governments around the world. National Security Council (NSC) spokesman J.P. Crowley explained that high numbers of infections "can very easily overwhelm a government and start to undo the careful progress you've made in other areas." As part of its stepped up effort against AIDS, the White House is asking for increased funding to fight AIDS overseas and earlier this year established a White House interagency working group. White House spokesman Jim Kennedy also reported that the NSC is working with White House AIDS Policy Director Sandra Thurman to come up with new strategies for fighting AIDS. President Clinton plans to discuss the AIDS epidemic at a meeting with European Union leaders at an upcoming meeting in Portugal and also at a meeting with Group of Eight leaders this summer. "China Reports Rise in Drug Addiction" Washington Post (www.washingtonpost.com) (05/01/00) P. A17 China reported a 14.3 increase in the number of registered drug addicts between 1998 and 1999, for a total of 680,000 by the end of last year. According to a report from the New China News Agency, approximately 490,000 of the addicts reported using heroin. Most of the addicts live in Yunnan province, near the borders of Burma and Laos. Injection drug use is responsible for over 70 percent of China's HIV infections. "Specialist Sees Needle Law as a Lifesaver" Boston Globe Online--New Hampshire Weekly (www.boston.com/globe) (04/30/00) P. 14; Collins, Rachel M. Proposed legislation in New Hampshire would allow the sale of hypodermic needles without a prescription. Dr. Josiah Rich of Brown University said the new law will help prevent the spread of HIV and hepatitis infections. Rich noted, "In the United States, intravenous drug abuse is the driving force behind our current HIV epidemic, not to mention the problem of hepatitis C, which is probably five times higher." The New Hampshire measure was passed by a state Senate vote in April, and Gov. Jeanne Shaheen reportedly plans to sign the bill, which had been rejected by previous governors. Statistics show that New Hampshire has a relatively low incidence of AIDS, with 4.7 cases per 100,000 people in 1997; however, more than a third of the cases reported that year were associated with injection drug use. "Scientists Hold Out Hope for Vaccine" Calgary Herald (www.canoe.ca/calgarysun/home.html) (05/01/00) P. A4 Dr. Neal Nathanson of the U.S. National Institutes of Health Said Sunday he is optimistic about developing an effective AIDS vaccine. "Five of 10 years from now, we will have developed an effective vaccine and will look back on this as a time of hope and confusion." A number of vaccine candidates have demonstrated their ability to confer partial protection against HIV in monkeys; however, very few have reached human tests. "DuPont Pharmaceuticals Expand Access to HIV Drug" Reuters Health Information Services (04/28/00) DuPont Pharmaceuticals has launched an expanded access program to help HIV-infected children and adolescents obtain a liquid formulation of Sustiva (efavirenz) along with other HIV treatments. The company has designed the program as an open-label, multi-center study of children ages three to 16. Under the program, patients who are antiretroviral therapy-naive will be started on liquid therapy in conjunction with two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), while treatment-experienced patients who are failing their existing regimen will be given the liquid therapy with at least one more NRTI and/or protease inhibitor which they have not taken previously. DuPont expects to file a new drug application for the liquid formulation of Sustiva in both the United States and Canada later this year. "News of TB Outbreak Catches the Homeless Unaware" Raleigh News and Observer (www.news-observer.com) (04/30/00) P. B1; Saker, Anne Five homeless men in Raleigh, North Carolina, talked about the threat of tuberculosis, after 10 homeless men in the city received treatment for the disease in the last five months. Peter Leone, medical director of the county's TB program, said the general population is at low risk, but they want to find a source and contain the spread of the disease among homeless persons. Medical officials are looking into shelters as being the source, but many homeless are nomadic and hard to locate. If one person is the source, those who live outside could be at risk by having contact with him. Some agencies are helping to let the homeless know they should get tested, distributing information, but because drug and alcohol use is forbidden inside the shelters, some homeless people may not get tested. Leone emphasized that, contrary to what some people may believe, homeless people do care about their health and need to be located so they can be informed about the need for testing. "Frank Drug Talk Shocks Schools Boss" Edmonton Sun (www.canoe.ca/edmontonsun/home.html) (04/29/00) P. 18; Sheremata, Davis In Canada, public school officials in Edmonton have rejected a federal Health Department HIV prevention pamphlet that seems to endorse injection drug use. The pamphlet states: "Just because we've made the choice that we don't want AIDS doesn't mean the party's over," noting that the risk for HIV infection can be reduced by always using condoms and new syringes. George Nicholson, the chairman of Edmonton Public Schools, has opposed the pamphlet, stating that "to countenance illegal drug use and (promiscuous) sexual activity, I don't think that's an appropriate thing to bring into our schools." While other have also decried the pamphlet, which provides detailed instructions for having safe sex and cleaning needles, Health Canada spokesman Michael Jacino explains that the pamphlet is merely acknowledging the existence of drug abuse. Already, about 6,500 copies of the pamphlet have been distributed at clinics, schools, and libraries throughout the country. "Killer Rubber" New Scientist (www.newscientist.com) (04/08/00) Vol. 166, No. 2233, P. 13; Muir, Hazel A new antimicrobial rubber may help stop the spread of hospital infections and improve condoms' effectiveness in preventing HIV. Research reported earlier this year indicated that some superbugs can live for months on hospital fabrics, including aprons and curtains. Now, however, Shelby Worley at Auburn University in Alabama has developed an antimicrobial rubber that kills viruses and bacteria on contact. Although the rubber has not yet been tested on viruses, lab tests reveal that the rubber can kill Staphylococcus aureus and other bacteria within five minutes. Worley anticipates hospitals using the rubber in a variety of products, including condoms and surgical gloves. **************************************************************** INFORMATION FROM THE CENTERS OF DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION **************************************************************** The HIV/AIDS Connection Recently a number of organizations have requested updated information on the evidence that HIV causes AIDS. NIAID/NIH has a very informative web-site that includes facts and myths about this topic. The web-site is equipped with several links to scientific articles and other information. The web-address is http://www.niaid.nih.gov/spotlight/hiv00/default.htm. **************************************************************** The PreventioNews Mailing List is maintained by the National