Date: Thu, 10 Aug 1995 09:39:17 +0500 From: ghfostel{CONTRACTOR/ASPEN/ghfostel}%NAC-GATEWAY.ASPEN@ace.aspensys.com Subject: CDC AIDS Daily Summary 08/10/95 AIDS Daily Summary August 10, 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 ************************************************************ "Two Charged After AIDS Deaths" "'AIDS Gang' Robs Banks without Fear" "Names & Faces: Geffen's AIDS Aid" "Insurers Paid 4.5 Percent More in '94 for AIDS Claims" "Chimp Research Laboratory Is Taken Over by Foundation" "Klein Urges HIV Testing" "Biaxin OKed for MAC" "Scandal Touches HIV Vaccine Development in Japan" "Crisis Control: Dealing with AIDS in the Workplace" "Color Atlas of Ocular Manifestations of AIDS: Diagnosis and Management" ************************************************************ "Two Charged After AIDS Deaths" Financial Times (08/10/95) P. 2 Prosecutors in Germany have charged two company officials with three cases of murder and 5,837 cases of attempted murder for distributing blood plasma which had not been screened for HIV. The prosecutors claim that nine batches of untested blood from an HIV-infected donor were sent to several clinics in 1986 and 1987, just after it became mandatory to test blood for HIV. The two men--the managing director of blood processor Haemoplas and the co-owner of a laboratory in Wulfrath--are also said to have delivered more than 5,800 shipments of frozen blood products throughout Germany, even though at least 84 percent of it had not been tested for the virus that causes AIDS. Related Story: New York Times (08/10) P. A7 "'AIDS Gang' Robs Banks without Fear" Washington Times (08/10/95) P. A14; Baldwin, Alan The three members of Italy's "AIDS Gang" have threatened to rob another bank unless they receive additional help from the government. "We rob because we are forced to. To eat. To keep our problem a live issue," explained Ferdinando Attanasio, who, like his fellow gang members, cannot be jailed because he has AIDS. Member Antonio Lamarra asked for "work, a place to live and help," and noted that Italy was happy to pay wages and protection to Mafia defectors who had murdered people. The three men who rob banks in broad daylight without worrying about security cameras were detained after a hold-up last week but were released under an Italian law that prohibits people in the final stages of a terminal illness from being incarcerated. The repeated thefts have caused many, including the police and judicial authorities, to question the two-year-old law. Related Story: USA Today (08/10) P. 8A "Names & Faces: Geffen's AIDS Aid" Washington Post (08/10/95) P. C3; Wagner, Michael On Wednesday, entertainment mogul David Geffen contributed $4 million--the largest gift ever to AIDS services--to Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC) and God's Love We Deliver (GLWD). "There are so many people infected today," said Geffen. "People need to be conscious of what they can do--it's a great need." GMHC, the oldest and largest AIDS organization in the United States, will receive $2.5 million to build an HIV testing, education, and counseling facility named the David Geffen Center for HIV Prevention and Health Education. GLWD, which delivers hot meals to homebound AIDS patients, will receive the remaining $1.5 million. The funds will be used to renovate a building in SoHo that is three times larger than its present kitchen and will be called the David Geffen Building. Geffen contributed $1 million in 1992 to both GMHC and to the AIDS Project of Los Angeles. Related Story: Wall Street Journal (08/10) P. A1; USA Today (08/10) P 1D; New York Times (08/10) P. B3 "Insurers Paid 4.5 Percent More in '94 for AIDS Claims" Wall Street Journal (08/10/95) P. B5 A new study reveals that in 1994 insurers paid 4.5 percent more in AIDS-related claims than in 1993. According to the American Council of Life Insurance and the Health Insurance Association of America, the nearly $1.6 billion in AIDS-related claims represents the lowest increase in the nine years the trade groups have conducted the survey. As a percentage of all group health and accident claims, the number of claims related to AIDS fell 0.3 percent to 1 percent from the previous year. The number as a percentage of individual claims, however, remained near 1993's 1.5 percent--a phenomenon which the health insurance association attributes in part to improved medical management and case management by insurers. "Chimp Research Laboratory Is Taken Over by Foundation" New York Times (08/10/95) P. B5; Revkin, Andrew C. New York University Medical Center transferred ownership of its chimpanzee research laboratory to the Coulston Foundation on Wednesday, in spite of objections from animal rights advocates. The Laboratory for Experimental Medicine and Surgery in Primates (Lemsip) has played a key part in the development of hepatitis vaccines and testing for AIDS vaccines. Suzanne Roy, program director of In Defense of Animals, objected to the transaction, saying, "Lemsip stood alone among animal research labs for its open-door policy and responsiveness to humane concerns." The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently charged the Coulston Foundation with keeping chimpanzees in undersize cages, and causing the avoidable deaths of at least five of the animals. "Klein Urges HIV Testing" Maclean's (07/24/95) Vol. 108, No. 30, P. 20 Alberta Premier Ralph Klein has proposed testing prospective immigrants to Canada for HIV. "We should know if someone coming into this country or applying to come into this country is HIV-positive," he explained. "It's a very dangerous disease and could contribute even further to the cost of caring for that disease." A recent report from Alberta on immigration policy said the province will counsel the government to turn away potential immigrants who are infected with the virus that causes AIDS. "Biaxin OKed for MAC" POZ (08/95-09/95) No. 9, P. 22 Abbott Laboratories will soon begin selling its pneumonia drug Biaxin (clarithromycin) as a preventive treatment for Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC), pending U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval. Clinical trials indicate that Biaxin successfully fights off MAC, a common AIDS infection in individuals with CD4 counts less than 100. The drug, however, has not been compared to the current MAC prophylaxis, Mycobutin (rifabutin) from Pharmacia. One potential problem is that more than 50 percent of the patients who developed MAC while taking Biaxin became resistant to the drug, which only makes treatment of the illness more difficult. "Scandal Touches HIV Vaccine Development in Japan" Nature Medicine (08/95) Vol. 1, No. 8, P. 727; Nathan, Richard A stock market scandal in Japan could threaten future funding of promising research into the development of an HIV vaccine. Tsutomu Matsuzaki--the former president of the now-defunct computer software company TSD, which was developing an HIV vaccine with a scientist at Yokohama City University--allegedly made untrue statements about the research to increase the company's share price. Three years ago, Matsuzaki announced that clinical trials had begun, and that he had established a company to develop the vaccine. In addition, Matsuzaki--who was arrested last month--reportedly claimed that TSD had signed a joint research agreement with a Russian institute, five days before refunding was due on convertible bonds worth 4.7 billion yen, or $55 million. The company's share price then increased by about 400 yen to 2,800 yen, and the stock price soared to a high of 3,650 yen. It is alleged that TSD reduced its financial burden by 1.5 billion yen. Clinical trials were not conducted. Meanwhile, professor Kenji Okuda--who was developing the vaccine for TSD--says he will now "look carefully for a proper pharmaceutical company in the future." "Crisis Control: Dealing with AIDS in the Workplace" Entrepeneur (08/95) Vol. 23, No. 8, P. 128; Griffin, Cynthia E. The AIDS epidemic has significant implications for small businesses. "Over half the work force in America falls within [the 25 to 44] age group," and AIDS is the leading cause of death in this category, notes Jeff Monford, director of the Workplace Resource Center of The National Leadership Coalition on AIDS. Therefore, an entrepeneur's first move should be to devise a strategy to address the illness and related issues in the larger context of his business, says consultant Alan Emery. According to Barney Singer of the Small Business Administration (SBA), AIDS policies can address legal, privacy, confidentiality, and job accommodation issues--many of which are dealt with in the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). For small businesses, the two most important sections of the ADA are Title One and Title Three, which deal with employment provisions and discrimination, respectively. The cost of AIDS is also a concern to small-business owners. For example, many do not understand the "reasonable accommodation" part of the ADA, and expect such accommodations will cost thousands of dollars. In fact, one study found the average reasonable change cost just $112. "All that is required are reasonable accommodations for people to work [or patronize the business], unless it would place undue hardship, significant difficulty, or expense on a business," explains SBA's Singer. "Color Atlas of Ocular Manifestations of AIDS: Diagnosis and Management" New England Journal of Medicine (08/03/95) Vol. 333, No. 5, P. 328; Duker, Jay S. "Color Atlas of Ocular Manifestations of AIDS: Diagnosis and Management," written by Juan Orellana, Ronni M. Lieberman, and Steven A. Teich, fills the gap in the lack of textbooks concerning AIDS-related ocular problems. The book includes excellent color plates, and the chapter on the posterior segment of the eye is particularly good. Not surprisingly, cytomegalovirus is well covered, but there are also examples of more unusual disorders--including choroidal cryptococcosis, herpes zoster retinitis, and candida endophtalmitis. Although few disorders are ignored, one of the most obvious omissions is rifabutin-induced uveitis, one of the most common causes of iritis in HIV-infected patients. Most medical specialists may find the book's review of the history, epidemiology, and systemic manifestations of AIDS too basic, but the discussion is ideal for eye care specialists who have limited experience with systemic diseases.