Subject: CDC AIDS DAILY SUMMARY 02/18/94
From: "ANNE WILSON, CDC NAC" <[email-masked]>

AIDS Daily Summary 
                     February 18, 1994

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 1993, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD

"Writer Randy Shilts Dies; Chronicled Rise of AIDS"
Washington Post (02/18/94) P. B7  (Smith, J. Y.)
     Randy Shilts, a journalist covering AIDS for the San Francisco 
Chronicle and author of a best-selling book on the disease, died 
of AIDS on Feb. 17 at the age of 42.  Shilts was one of the first
openly gay reporters to work for a mainstream newspaper.  At the 
Chronicle, he became a liaison between the homosexual community 
and the general public for news and opinions about AIDS.  He is 
probably best-known, however, for his book "And the Band Played 
On: People, Politics, and the AIDS Epidemic."  Appearing in 1987,
the book was a detailed, well-documented history of America's 
failure to deal with AIDS.  In 1993, it was made into an HBO 
movie starring Richard Gere and Alan Alda.  Shilts also announced
last year that he had been infected with HIV in 1987.  Related 
Story: New York Times (02/18) P. D17; Los Angeles 
Times--Washington Edition (02/18) P. A1; Baltimore Sun (02/18) P.
3A
      
"Blood Safety Measure Goes to House Panel"
Baltimore Sun (02/18/94) P. 4B
     The Senate yesterday approved the Blood Safety Act of 1994, which
would require doctors to inform patients before elective surgery 
of options that would ensure their protection from AIDS and other
blood-borne diseases spread through transfusions.  The bill would
oblige surgeons to advise patients that donating their own blood 
is the only guarantee against contracting disease during 
transfusion.  Surgeons would also force surgeons to inform 
patients about other options, including use of a relative's 
blood.  While most opponents--including the Red Cross--concur 
that self-donated blood is safest, they argue that blood donated 
by a relative can be even more dangerous than anonymous blood 
because an infected spouse or child might lie about having AIDS. 
Although the blood supply in general is safe, according to bill 
sponsor Sen. Vernon F. Boozer, a few hundred people each year 
contract HIV through blood transfusions.  The measure now moves 
on to the House Environmental Matters Committee.
      
"Baltimore Needle-Swap Gains Allies"
Baltimore Sun (02/18/94) P. 4B  (Langfitt, Frank)
     Some of Maryland's most influential public officials yesterday 
endorsed plans for a Baltimore needle-exchange program that has 
been rejected by the state legislature for the past two years.  
In addition to top health and public safety officials, Baltimore 
Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke, state Senate President Thomas V. Mike 
Miller Jr., and House Speaker Casper R. Taylor Jr. also announced
their support of the plan at yesterday's House committee hearing.
The pilot program would allow drug addicts to trade used needles 
for clean ones and, proponents contend, would prevent the spread 
of AIDS.  Legislators, however, have twice blocked the plan out 
of fear that the program would encourage drug use.  Schmoke is 
seeking legislative help to circumvent a state law prohibiting 
distribution of drug paraphernalia.  If approved, the city would 
open several clinics this summer to accommodate as many as 1,000 
drug addicts, said Dr. Peter Bellenson, city health commissioner.
The prospect for a needle exchange appears to be more favorable 
this year, in part because Gov. William Donald Schaefer--once a 
firm opponent to the program--has reconsidered his position.
      
"Response to AIDS Gains in Subtlety"
New York Times (02/18/94) P. C28  (Smith, Roberta)
     As AIDS continues its rampage, art continues to be created in 
response, and the art grows more subtle and profound.  An example
is "From Media to Metaphor: Art About AIDS," an exhibition at the
Grey Art Gallery and Study Center of New York University.  The 
exhibition displays a wide range of work, from media posters, 
videos, and symbols of Act Up and Gran Fury to the photographs 
and abstract paintings of renowned and unheralded artists.  
Included in the exhibit are works by famous talents such as 
Robert Mapplethorpe, David Wojnarowicz, and Keith Harding, all of
whom died of AIDS.  "From Media to Metaphor," which appears to 
target audiences not familiar with the esthetic repercussions of 
AIDS, is a valuable, diverse exhibition.  The works included 
reflect the discussion of AIDS throughout visual culture and 
suggest that the disease may become a permanent part of the 
artistic landscape.
      
"France Revamps AIDS Agency"
Wall Street Journal (02/18/94) P. A7
     The French government dissolved its anti-AIDS agency, and turned 
the responsibilities of the office over to the Health Ministry.  
The change was prompted when state auditors found that the agency
used money from a fund for hemophiliacs to cover some of its 
expenses, destroyed 400,000 condoms that were designated as 
substandard in a distribution program, and paid two former 
chairmen salaries far higher than the legal limit.  France, which
has documented 32,000 AIDS cases since the epidemic began in 
1981, has more AIDS cases than any other European country.  The 
country also has 110,000 people who are infected with HIV.
      
"Art Imitates Life in Calif. Lawyer's View of AIDS Firing"
Los Angeles Times--Washington Edition (02/17/94) P. 13
     Gay Calif. lawyer Martin D. Caprow says that watching the film 
"Philadelphia" was "like watching my own nightmare."  The 
37-year-old attorney was fired from his job in 1992 because a 
senior partner learned of his HIV-positive condition and because 
his infection would prevent the firm from obtaining a new, less 
expensive health insurance plan.  Now, Caprow--who has since 
developed full-blown AIDS--is the plaintiff in a trial that 
strikingly resembles the fictional case portrayed in 
"Philadelphia," in which a gay lawyer sues his firm on the 
grounds of AIDS discrimination.  The senior partner at San 
Diego's Frank & Freedus firm, however, testified that Caprow was 
dismissed because the firm was losing clients and needed to cut 
expenses--not because he had HIV.  According to the senior 
partner, Caprow was not as good as other lawyers with comparable 
standing in the firm.  The case is being heard without a jury 
because lawyers for Frank & Freedus feared jurors would be 
influenced by the film.
      
"HIV Service Agency Set"
Houston Chronicle (02/17/94) P. 32A
     The responsibility of administering HIV service funds from the 
Texas Department of Health and the Health Resources Services 
Administration will be assumed by a new agency.  The Houston 
Regional HIV/AIDS Resource Group replaces the Greater Houston HIV
Alliance, which became embroiled in financial and political 
disputes after a split with county officials two years ago.  The 
new agency will administer close to $3 million in state services 
funds as well as a federal grant for federal care, according to 
executive director Michael J. Springer, who formerly served as 
head of the HIV Alliance.
      
"Blood Bank Tech Spattered, Dies From AIDS"
American Medical News (02/07/94) Vol. 37, No. 5, P. 14
     The director of a blood bank was not responsible for the death of
a technician who was splashed with HIV-infected blood, ruled a 
Pennsylvania Supreme Court.  Because of the patient's urgent need
for platelets, HIV test results of the donor's blood were not 
confirmed before an apheresis procedure was conducted.  During 
the procedure, there was difficulty with the tubing of the 
apheresis machine.  The technician removed segments of tubing 
containing the donor's blood without clamping or restricting the 
flow of blood, which consequently spurted onto her hands and 
arms.  Despite the proximity of a sink and gloves, the technician
ignored hospital infection control policy by failing to 
immediately wash the blood from herself.  She remained covered 
with blood for about 45 minutes while she cleaned blood from the 
floor and machine--without wearing gloves--and put the machine 
back into operation, at which point she finally washed the blood 
off.  HIV tests on the donor's blood came back positive, and the 
technician eventually tested HIV-positive as well.  When she died
of AIDS in October 1989, her family filed suit against the blood 
bank and director.  The suit alleged that the director was 
negligent in scheduling the procedure before discovering the 
results of the HIV test, and in failing to warn the technician 
about the unknown test results.  It also blamed the director for 
not requiring the technician to wear gloves at all times.  A jury
found that the blood bank and director had indeed been negligent,
but not enough so as to cause her death.  After an appeal, the 
court affirmed the jury's decision.
      
"Vaginal Microbicides and Prevention of HIV Infection"
Lancet (02/05/94) Vol. 343, No. 8893, P. 362  (Stein, Zena A.)
     Zena A. Stein of the HIV Center for Clinical Behavioral Studies 
at New York State Psychiatric Institute points out that Lange et 
al.'s report on the World Health Organization's conference on 
vaginal microbicides omits one recommendation.  That proposal 
suggests research into a microbicide that is not also a 
spermicide.  At present, individual couples as well as family 
planning agencies probably do not look to vaginal microbicides as
reliable contraception, says Stein.  There are, however, many 
couples, societies, and religious groups who have no desire for 
contraception, but are aware of the need to protect themselves 
against infection.  The first step, Stein states, is to determine
whether or not spermatozoa are vectors for HIV.  If they are 
not--the most likely outcome--this recommendation could prove 
fruitful, she concludes.
      
"AIDSLine: Microspordia and Diarrhea"
Advocate (02/08/94) No. 648, P. 34
     Microspordia may not play as critical a role in HIV-related 
chronic diarrhea as was previously thought, according to a study 
published in the Annals of Internal Medicine on Nov. 1, 1993.  
The study evaluated the presence of microspordia in the 
intestinal biopsies of 106 HIV patients.  The results indicated 
that 55 patients suffering from chronic diarrhea were no more 
likely to be infected with the organism than were the 51 patients
who didn't have diarrhea, even when taking into account the 
current helper-cell counts.  More importantly, however, the 
researchers discovered 13 patients who had no gastrointestinal 
symptoms, but were infected with the microbe.

The AIDS Daily Summary will not publish on Monday, February 21, 1994.  
Publication will resume on Tuesday, February 22.