AIDS Daily Summary April 3, 1996 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 National AIDS Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC National AIDS Clearinghouse should be cited as the source of this information. Copyright 1996, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD ************************************************************ "Lawsuit Seeks to Bar U.S. From Access To AIDS Files" "AIDS Funding Cut by $600,000" "Mission Goes Global, Grows Ever Broader" "Funding for AIDS Drugs in the Spotlight" "An HIV-positive Father Tells Children in a Book" "Hepatitis Strain Rare Among U.S. Blood Donors" "HIV Seroprevalence Among Injection Drug Users: No Decline" "Tuberculosis, AIDS, and Death Among Substance Abusers on Welfare in New York City" "Contraceptives' Role in HIV Transmission Is Examined" "Isolation and Characteristics of Mycobacterium Avium Complex From Water and Soil Samples in Uganda" ************************************************************ "Lawsuit Seeks to Bar U.S. From Access To AIDS Files" New York Times (04/03/96) P. A13; Lewin, Tamar Boston social service agencies are filing a complaint in federal district court today to keep federal officials from obtaining records with the names and social security numbers of people with AIDS. Last May, federal auditors from the Inspector General's office took such records from a Boston center for Haitian immigrants with AIDS and passed them on to other government officials in an effort to determine whether the people receiving federal AIDS-related support were in fact HIV-positive. The auditors claim it is the only way to verify that people in programs for AIDS patients are eligible. Administrators at AIDS clinics say allowing the government access to the records threatens their programs' confidentiality. "AIDS Funding Cut by $600,000" Boston Globe (04/02/96) P. 17; Kong, Dolores Massachusetts' share of funds under the Ryan White CARE Act was cut by $600,000, or 16 percent for the fiscal year, threatening coverage for AIDS drugs, home care, and other services. A State House rally was planned for Tuesday to call for increasing funding for newly approved promising AIDS drugs called protease inhibitors. The lost money could be restored retroactively if Congress reauthorizes the Ryan White Act, which expired on Sept. 30, and passes a 1996 federal budget. Mary Ann Hart, of Project ABLE, or AIDS Budget Legislative Effort, said the funding cut "is even more reason to increase state funding." Her organization is looking for $4.5 million more in the state AIDS line item for fiscal 1997. Massachusetts Gov. Weld, however, is asking for a $2.5 million increase, while the House Ways and Means budget calls for an increase of $538,000. "Mission Goes Global, Grows Ever Broader" USA Today (04/03/96) P. 1D; Manning, Anita The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, has expanded its disease-fighting mission on a global and sociological scale. The CDC not only fights infectious diseases, but also battles gun violence, poverty, and poor nutrition. Director David Satcher points out that "you can no longer separate infectious diseases from human behavior." Citing the AIDS epidemic, he explains that, "if the science tells us that 75 percent of teen-agers are sexually active by the time they finish high school, our programs must deal with abstinence," adding that they also need to know how to protect themselves. While the agency has been criticized for making recommendations that infringe on social and religious issues, Satcher says the agency cannot afford not to do so. "Funding for AIDS Drugs in the Spotlight" Toronto Globe and Mail (04/02/96) P. A2; Ha, Tu Thanh In a commentary in the Toronto Globe and Mail, Tu Thanh Ha tells the story of a Canadian AIDS patient who went on a hunger strike to protest the government's refusal to pay for a $300-a-month drug he needed, called 3TC. The Quebec government had decided to limit the payment to only welfare recipients, patients over 65, and those unable to take other standard drugs. However, the policy was reversed, government officials said, because new data proved the drug's benefits. With new, even more costly drugs becoming available, the fight to get government funding is expected to escalate, the author concludes. "An HIV-Positive Father Tells Children in a Book" Philadelphia Inquirer (04/03/96) P. E3; Sacks, Melinda Earl Alexander, who faced the task of telling his 5-year-old daughter that he had HIV, has written a picture book, "My Dad Has HIV," to help other parents deal with the problem. The book is an attempt to give children information they need in a form they can manage at a young age. Some 200,000 children will be orphaned by AIDS by the year 2000. Alexander's next book, "Our Dad Has AIDS," will be told from the point of view of his daughters. "Hepatitis Strain Rare Among U.S. Blood Donors" Reuters (04/02/96) A strain of hepatitis attributed to most infections from blood transfusions is found in less than 1 percent of U.S. blood donors but is more common among less educated, younger men, researchers said Tuesday. Between March 1992 and December 1993, only 3.6 out of 1,000 donors tested positive for hepatitis C, but the rate of infection was as high as 8.6 per 1,000 among men in their thirties. Male donors between the ages of 20 and 50 had significantly higher infection rates than women, and donors who did not graduate from high school were as much as 10 times more likely to be infected than those who reached the highest education levels. Hepatitis C is the most common cause of post-transfusion hepatitis and is associated with chronic liver disease. "HIV Seroprevalence Among Injection Drug Users: No Decline" Reuters (04/02/96) The seroprevalence of HIV among injection drug users stayed the same from 1988 through 1993, according to a new report by D. Rebecca Prevots and colleagues at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The results were based on analysis of data from drug treatment programs at 60 different sites and included HIV tests of 70,800 samples. Seroprevalence remained low in low-prevalence groups and high in high-prevalence groups, Prevots said. "Tuberculosis, AIDS, and Death Among Substance Abusers on Welfare in New York City" New England Journal of Medicine (03/28/96) Vol. 334, No. 13, P. 828; Friedman, Lloyd N.; Williams, Michael T.; Singh, Tejinder P.; et al. The dramatic rise in the incidence of tuberculosis (TB) in New York City in the last decade is attributed to HIV infection, drug abuse, alcoholism, homelessness, immigration, drug resistance, and reduced vigilance by public health organizations. From 1984 to 1992, Dr. Lloyd N. Friedman of Yale University and colleagues followed a group of 858 welfare applicants and recipients who abused drugs or alcohol. During the study period, 5.5 percent of the participants developed TB, 9.8 percent developed AIDS, and 21.3 percent died. The rate of newly diagnosed TB was 14.8 times higher in the study group than the normal rate in New York City. The rate of AIDS was 10 times as high, and the death rate was 5.2 times the normal rate. For AIDS and TB programs to be effective among indigent substance abusers, the authors conclude, health services must be integrated into the welfare delivery system. "Contraceptives' Role in HIV Transmission Is Examined" AIDS Alert (03/96) Vol. 11, No. 3, P. 30 The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) in Bethesda, Md., is conducting a study of how various contraceptives affect HIV transmission. Diaphragms and cervical caps are effective contraceptive shields, but are less reliable against pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases than the male condom. NICHD is evaluating a new customized cervical cap that would be fitted by a health care provider in one visit. Other contraceptives, including a modified diaphragm and a vaginal sponge and vaginal ring that would release a contraceptive hormone, are also in development. Only three new contraceptives have been approved this decade: the female condom; Norplant, a hormonal implant; and Depo-Provera, an injectable hormone. The NICHD is also investigating whether the use of hormonal contraceptives increase HIV risk. The agency recently reported that the physiologic effects of hormonal contraceptives may affect HIV transmission. "Women might be more susceptible during menses, after menopause, or if they are on hormonal contraceptives," said Pamala Stratton, an NICHD researcher. "Isolation and Characteristics of Mycobacterium Avium Complex From Water and Soil Samples in Uganda" Journal of the American Medical Association (03/27/96) Vol. 275, No. 12, P. 894 Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) organisms have not been isolated in late-stage AIDS patients in Uganda, a situation which caused scientists to theorize that there was an absence of MAC in the local environment. But researchers at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University found representatives of the Mycobacterium avium complex in 43 percent of the water and soil samples taken in Kampala, Uganda. Furthermore, they determined that the isolates were similar to those found in the United States and European AIDS patients and their environment.