AIDS Daily Summary August 9, 1995 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 1995, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD ************************************************************ "Vitamin A and Infants with H.I.V." "Robbers with AIDS Evade Jail in Italy" "Across the USA: Tennessee" "Show of Support" "Rock for Research" "Blocked in U.S., AIDS Kit Goes Overseas" "Eastern Arctic Puzzle: Why HIV Is Still So Rare" "Fighting AIDS, Getty 'Not Afraid of Death'" "Justices Ask Clinton Administration's View of AZT Patent Issue" "Agen Biomedical to Make AIDS Test Kits in China" ************************************************************ "Vitamin A and Infants with H.I.V." New York Times (08/09/95) P. C8 A new study by researchers at Natal University in South Africa indicates that vitamin A could be a low-cost way to reduce some of the illnesses that HIV-infected babies contract. The study, published in The American Journal of Public Health, found that moderately large doses of vitamin A helped infants fight off AIDS-related illnesses, particularly dangerous diarrhea. A total of 118 babies born to HIV-infected women were given either vitamin A or placebos. Regardless of HIV status, all the children who received supplementation had fewer illnesses. Among HIV-infected infants, the vitamin supplements reduced diarrhea cases by nearly 50 percent, and reduced diarrhea cases that last more than one week by 56 percent. In addition, diarrhea-related hospital stays were more than 75 percent shorter among the HIV-positive babies who received vitamin A. Anna Coutsoudis, an author of the study, noted that the study followed the infants for just 18 months, so it could not be determined whether vitamin A helped them live longer. "Robbers with AIDS Evade Jail in Italy" New York Times (08/09/95) P. A9 In Turin, Italy, a group of robbers--called the "AIDS gang" by newspapers--has been released again after their fourth bank hold-up in three weeks. The members, who are secure in the knowledge that they will not be imprisoned because they have AIDS, rob the banks in full view of security cameras and without covering their faces. "They know they can't be imprisoned, so they take no precautions to hide their identities," a police spokesman said. Under Italian law, full-blown AIDS patients cannot be jailed. In the most recent robbery, the "AIDS gang" stole $12,000 and hid the money prior to their arrest. "Across the USA: Tennessee" USA Today (08/09/95) P. 5A An HIV-infected man in Gallatin, Tenn., may go to prison for spitting in a police officer's face. Ronnie Todd was charged under a 1994 Tennessee law that makes it illegal to expose another person to AIDS. "Show of Support" USA Today (08/09/95) P. 3D; Zimmerman, David Radio personality Chuck "Hoss" Burns this week became the first well-known person in the country-music industry to reveal that he has AIDS. Country music stars were quick to offer Burns their support. "Garth [Brooks]'s people were the first to call," said Nashville's WSIX-FM general manager John King, after the station announced it will hold a day-long radiothon next week to support Burns and to raise money for the pediatric AIDS unit of St. Jude Children's Hospital. Burns, who tested HIV-positive 10 years ago, said he made the announcement because he had "told my friends, told my family, told my work, and told my mother. It was time to tell everybody else." Although he is leaving the station, Burns will continue to host the weekly radio show "Country Hitmakers," which boasts more than 2 million listeners. "Rock for Research" USA Today (08/09/95) P. 4D; Peterson, Karen S.; Hellmich, Nanci This week's 13th Annual Rock 'N Roll Charity Celebration in Los Angeles will benefit research funds for AIDS, cancer, and other diseases. The three-day affair--to which such stars as Glenn Frey, Little Richard, and Luke Perry are expected to attend--includes a silent auction, golf tournament, and bowling. Proceeds of the fundraiser will go to the T.J. Martell Foundation and the Neil Bogart Memorial Fund, which finance research for cancer, AIDS, and leukemia. "Blocked in U.S., AIDS Kit Goes Overseas" St. Louis Post-Dispatch (08/07/95) P. 1E; Nolin, Robert According to Dr. Joseph D'Angelo, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is too strict when it comes to over-the-counter home test kits. The Miami physician has developed a saliva-based HIV test kit that costs $9.23, compared to professionally administered ones that can cost as much as $200. D'Angelo is marketing the Ana-Sal kit to foreign governments because the FDA makes "it very difficult to do something like this." San Francisco's E.Y. Laboratories tested the product and found that in two out of 10 cases, Ana-Sal was more accurate than standard blood tests. A study at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami confirmed the validity of the process for detecting HIV. A major problem for the kit, however, is its lack of counseling. U.S. public health policy dictates that a person being tested for HIV must be counseled before and after the screening by a trained practitioner. The kit only includes a paragraph telling those who test HIV-positive to obtain a confirmatory test and medical treatment. "Eastern Arctic Puzzle: Why HIV Is Still So Rare" Toronto Globe and Mail (08/07/95) P. A1; Feschuk, Scott Although Broughton Island in Canada's Northwest Territory has a population of just 530, the health center's nurse says that not one month has gone by in five years in which a youth has not tested positive for a sexually transmitted disease. Infection rates in the region are as many as seven times higher than in Canada's southern communities. No one on Broughton Island, however, has been infected with HIV, says nurse Theresa Joseph. To explain the lack of HIV in the Eastern Arctic region, some health workers have suggested that the resident Inuit population may have a kind of physiological factor that reduces their chances of becoming infected, although there is no scientific proof of this. Others argue that HIV may be much more prevalent than is currently thought. It is also possible that some Inuit who doubt the true anonymity of HIV testing in their closely-knit community have gone to southern cities for testing, and that their statistics would be reflected there. The majority of health care professionals, however, believe that it is just luck that has guarded the region against AIDS--luck that is bound to come to an end in the face of data that reflects a very sexually active population. "Fighting AIDS, Getty 'Not Afraid of Death'" USA Today (08/08/95) P. 2D Aileen Getty--granddaughter of J. Paul Getty--says that after living with HIV for a decade and AIDS for six years, she believes she is prepared to die. In the September issue of Ladies' Home Journal, Getty states, "When I'm no longer capable of giving my children anything more, I intend to take my own life. I'm not afraid of death." The former daughter-in-law of actress Elizabeth Taylor says she became infected with HIV in 1985 "through unprotected sex during a brief, reckless affair." According to Getty, the man lied about his HIV status when he knew he was infected. "Justices Ask Clinton Administration's View of AZT Patent Issue" American Medical News (07/31/95) Vol. 38, No. 28, P. 8 The Supreme Court has asked lawyers from the Justice Department to comment on an appeal by two generic-drug makers from a ruling that found Burroughs Wellcome Co. entitled to five patents for AZT. The two companies said that Burroughs should not receive exclusive patents because some of the testing was performed at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Burroughs, which received six patents after NIH found AZT to be effective against HIV, sued Barr Laboratories and Novopharm for alleged patent infringement after each company sought permission to sell generic forms of the drug. Barr said that two NIH researchers should be added to the patent. The manufacturing of a generic product would then be possible because NIH awarded the company nonexclusive rights to do so. Novopharm, however, claimed that the patents were not valid because the NIH researchers were not named. After a series of appeals, attorneys for the two companies said that an invention must demonstrate its effectiveness before it can become eligible for a patent. The NIH scientists, therefore, would be entitled to share the patent. "Agen Biomedical to Make AIDS Test Kits in China" Nikkei Weekly (07/24/95) Vol. 33, No. 1681, P. 20 Australian medical-testing equipment producer Agen Biomedical Ltd. will establish a joint venture in Beijing to produce and market an HIV test kit that can provide results in a half an hour. According to sources, the company will provide the necessary clinical data and production technology for the kit. Agen, which will be joined by partners Beijing Hua Yi Biotechnology Co. and Diagnotech Co., will have a 25 percent interest in the endeavor.