Subject: CDC AIDS Daily Summary for Date: Mon Jun 5 07:01:01 PDT 2000 (187 lines) From: National AIDS Info Clearinghouse Copyright 2000, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD CDC HIV/STD/TB Prevention News Update Monday, June 5, 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 "Maternal and Fetal Hepatitis C Virus Exposure by Intrauterine Transfusion" GENERAL MEDIA "Americans Enjoy 70 Healthy Years, Behind Europe, U.N. Says" "Clinton Joins World Leaders in Summit to Address Growing Gap in Prosperity" "Ministers Take AIDS Tests" "Canada Funds Clinical Trials of Invisible Condom" "Florida Targeting Blacks With AIDS Awareness Ads" "Campaign to Help Parents Discuss Sex" "Tri-National Clinical Trial to Evaluate Treatments Strategies When HAART Fails" "Hundreds at Risk in British Hospital Hepatitis Scare" *************************************************************** PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS *************************************************************** "Maternal and Fetal Hepatitis C Virus Exposure by Intrauterine Transfusion" Lancet (www.thelancet.com) (05/27/00) Vol. 355, No. 9218, P. 1887; Geulen, Oliver; Hansmann, Manfred; Offergeld, Ruth; et al. German scientists have reported a case of accidental exposure to hepatitis C virus (HCV) for a mother and her fetus. The male fetus was given several intrauterine transfusions (IUT) of red blood cells because of severe Rhesus hemolytic disease. The blood used in the IUTs tested negative for HCV antibodies, but four months after the last IUT was given at 25 weeks of gestation, one donor was found to have seroconverted. The mother tested HCV positive, but the infant has shown no signs of infection up to age 13 months. This finding helps in the study of how HCV is transmitted. Because the fetus was exposed but did not become infected, the researchers theorize that parenteral exposure by itself does not cause infection, but that other immunity factors are involved. **************************************************************** GENERAL MEDIA **************************************************************** "Americans Enjoy 70 Healthy Years, Behind Europe, U.N. Says" New York Times (www.nytimes.com) (06/05/00) P. A10; Crossette, Barbara A new report from the World Health Organization (WHO) reveals that the United States fares worse than most European nations, Canada, Australia, and Israel in terms of "healthy life expectancy." The life expectancy value is measured through disease and disabilities relating to lifetime health. Japan leads the world for healthy life expectancy, with an average of 74.5 healthy years. In Sierra Leone, the last on the list, a child born last year can expect to live a healthy life for less than 26 years. The WHO noted almost every nation with a healthy life expectancy under 40 years is in Africa, as AIDS and war have taken their tolls. In addition, the report said that HIV and AIDS have reduced life expectancy in southern Africa by 15 to 20 years and by up to 10 years in other parts of Africa. Reasons behind the United States' ranking on the list include health problems among American minorities, AIDS, heart disease, violence, and tobacco-related cancers. According to the WHO, the healthy life expectancy in the United States is 70 years overall, with 67.5 years for men and 72.6 years for women. "Clinton Joins World Leaders in Summit to Address Growing Gap in Prosperity" Boston Globe Online (www.boston.com/globe) (06/04/00) P. A25; Barry, Colleen At a conference on "Progressive Governance" over the weekend, President Clinton, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, and other world leaders met in Berlin to discuss more evenly distributing wealth, technology, and jobs in the world. The officials noted that the three issues they will discuss at the next summit of the Group of Seven largest industrial powers and Russia are: fighting infectious diseases, particularly HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria; increasing educational opportunities; and closing the technology gap. "We don't believe that you can have social justice and deal with all these other challenges we face unless you have effective, progressive government that makes the most of the new economy and deals with its rough edges and difficulties as well," Clinton said. "Ministers Take AIDS Tests" Chicago Sun Times Online (www.suntimes.com) (06/02/00); Fornek, Scott Over 50 African-American ministers were set to be tested for HIV this weekend in Chicago as part of an effort to overcome the stigma surrounding AIDS and to stem the spread of HIV among African Americans. "There's a certain taboo and even a certain shame to AIDS," commented the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, who will lead the movement. Balm in Gilead, a national organization established 12 years ago to help African-American churches deal with AIDS, will start airing Monday television commercials about how the clergy can help. While similar mass testing has taken place in Atlanta, this is the first such movement in Chicago and the first time Jackson's Rainbow/PUSH coalition has been involved. In the United States, AIDS is the No. 1 cause of death of African-American men and women 25 to 44 years old. Statistics show that in Chicago, two-thirds of all new AIDS cases in 1998 were among African Americans, compared to 37 percent one decade before. "Canada Funds Clinical Trials of Invisible Condom" Fox News Online (www.foxnews.com) (06/02/00) Canadian Health Minister Allan Rock said Friday that Canada will help support tests of an "invisible condom," a liquid applied to the genitals, in order to prevent infection with HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. The Infectious Diseases Research Center at Laval University in Quebec City will receive C$350,000 in funding. The non-toxic liquid, which was developed by Laval researchers, is applied to a woman's genitals before sex and becomes a waterproof film that appears to reduce HIV transmission. "Florida Targeting Blacks With AIDS Awareness Ads" Bradenton Herald Online (www.bhip.com) (06/05/00) Florida health officials are funding an advertising campaign to boost AIDS awareness among African Americans and other minorities. The series of ads will run on television, radio, and billboards, using $750,000 a year. The messages will focus on getting tested for HIV, abstaining from sex or using a condom during sex, and not being afraid to talk about AIDS. The hip, straight-talking ads feature young people talking about AIDS in social situations. The spots will air about 375 times on television, over 1,000 times on the radio, and in 40 newspapers over the next year. "Campaign to Help Parents Discuss Sex" Washington Post (www.washingtonpost.com) (06/05/00) P. B3 In Washington, D.C., the D.C. Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy will start training parent educators this month. As part of the effort, an attempt to help parents comfortably discuss sex with their children, 10 teams of parent peer educators will learn to guide other parents in a course called "How to Talk to Your Child About Sex, Love, and Relationships." According to campaign director Brenda Rhodes Miller, research "supports helping parents initiate discussions with their children rather than waiting for their children to broach the subject." "Tri-National Clinical Trial to Evaluate Treatments Strategies When HAART Fails" Reuters Health Information Services (www.reutershealth.com) (06/02/00); Gale, Karla The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Medical Research Councils of Canada and the United Kingdom are studying treatments for HIV patients who fail highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). The study plans to enroll 1,000 to 1,500 patients at 60 sites over the course of three years. Dr. John Feussner, the VA chief research and development officer in Washington, D.C., said the goal is to see why the best drugs stop working. To do so, the researchers will test some of the same drugs but in different combinations, and they will also try using more drugs combined with treatment holidays of up to three months. "Hundreds at Risk in British Hospital Hepatitis Scare" Reuters (www.reuters.com) (06/02/00) Two British hospitals have advised hundreds of former patients to be tested for hepatitis C after a healthcare worker was diagnosed with the virus. Queen Elizabeth and Selly Oak hospitals have sent 750 patients letters about the virus, suggesting they may wish to be tested as a precaution, although the risk of infection is very low. Although a routine blood screening revealed the risk several months ago, the hospitals held off announcing the situation until those most at risk were identified.