From server@aspensys.com Wed Nov 13 07:51:06 1996 Received: from casti.com (vector.casti.com [199.181.80.100]) by qrd.rdrop.com (8.6.9/8.6.9) with ESMTP id HAA12685 for ; Wed, 13 Nov 1996 07:51:05 -0800 Received: from aspen3.aspensys.com by casti.com (8.6.9/NX3.0M) id KAA06463; Wed, 13 Nov 1996 10:46:48 -0500 Received: by aspen3.aspensys.com (SMI-8.6/SMI-SVR4) id KAA24562; Wed, 13 Nov 1996 10:51:06 -0500 Date: Wed, 13 Nov 1996 10:51:06 -0500 Message-Id: <9610138479.AA847909460@smtpinet.aspensys.com> Errors-To: shelly_olim_at_aspenpo@smtpinet.aspensys.com Reply-To: aidsnews@cdcnac.aspensys.com Originator: aidsnews@cdcnac.aspensys.com Sender: aidsnews@cdcnac.aspensys.com Precedence: bulk From: "Flynn Mclean" To: qrd@vector.casti.com Subject: CDC AIDS Daily Summary 11/13/96 X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Comment: CDC National AIDS Clearinghouse AIDS Daily Summary November 13, 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 ****************************************************** "Chronic Illnesses Cost U.S. $425 Billion a Year" "Deformity Drug Thalidomide to Make Comeback in U.S." "Clinton Administration Asks Supreme Court to Rule Against Assisted Suicide" "Pro-Gay Opinions Drive Rights Panel, Fined Dentist Says" "Feminists Allied With AIDS Activists" "Welfare Body Moves to Help AIDS Orphans in Zimbabwe" "Food-Health: Impact of AIDS on Food Security" "HIV Infection on Surge in Ukraine Penitentiaries" "HIV Test-Seeking Before and After the Restriction of Anonymous Testing in North Carolina" "One World, One Hope...One Gender?" ****************************************************** "Chronic Illnesses Cost U.S. $425 Billion a Year" Washington Post (11/13/96) P. A6 About 100 million Americans are affected by chronic illnesses, costing the country about $425 billion a year in health care, a new study has found. Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, report in today's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association that most people with chronic conditions, such as arthritis or diabetes, are not disabled but are continually threatened by relapses that could cause them to miss work and incur higher health costs. Chronic illnesses, defined as those which require medical attention and cause persistent and recurring health consequences for years, cost Americans $425 billion in treatment and medication each year. The number of people with chronic illnesses is expected to increase to 148 million by 2030. "Deformity Drug Thalidomide to Make Comeback in U.S." Washington Times (11/13/96) P. A3 Celgene announced on Monday that it will seek FDA approval of thalidomide for the treatment of inflamed leprosy. The company later plans to seek clearance to sell the drug to AIDS patients who experience wasting. Andrulis, meanwhile, plans to seek approval of thalidomide for the treatment of painful mouth, throat, and rectal ulcers that affect AIDS patients. The FDA, which is expected to decide those requests next year, is said to be taking steps to ensure that women taking the drug do not become pregnant to avoid severe birth defects. "Clinton Administration Asks Supreme Court to Rule Against Assisted Suicide" New York Times (11/13/96) P. A18; Greenhouse, Linda The Clinton administration told the Supreme Court on Tuesday that it opposed physician-assisted suicide, urging the court to rule that the right to a doctor's aid in hastening death is not guaranteed by the Constitution. Solicitor General Walter Dellinger filed two briefs in which the Administration supported efforts by the states of New York and Washington to defend their laws against physician-assisted suicide. The Administration noted that all nursing homes and medical centers operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs have a policy that allows patients to request the withdrawal or withholding of life-support, but prohibits "the active hastening of the moment of death." This distinction was rejected by two lower courts in the cases now being considered. "Pro-Gay Opinions Drive Rights Panel, Fined Dentist Says" Washington Times (11/13/96) P. A6; Trotta, Liz In New York, a dentist who was found guilty of discriminating against a man exposed to HIV has claimed that the ruling, made by the New York Human Rights Commission, shows that the group is led by agenda-driven fanatics who want to promote homosexual causes. Dr. Dennis W. Cahill was fined $10,000 for refusing to treat Roy Grabowski, who had revealed that he had been treated by a dentist who died of AIDS. He was then denied care until he could produce an HIV test result. Grabowski filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission. The Commission ruled that Cahill had discriminated under the state law that prohibits discrimination in employment, housing and places of "public accommodation." "Feminists Allied With AIDS Activists" St. Louis Post-Dispatch (11/12/96) P. 13B; Charen, Mona The National Organization of Women is more interested in educating women about rape than supporting laws to help rape victims, claims Mona Charen in a commentary in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Charen notes that NOW has joined AIDS activists in opposing mandatory HIV testing, even for accused rapists, and in protecting the privacy of those who test HIV-positive, even if they are sex offenders. Charen also points out that NOW has opposed the HIV Prevention Act of 1996, which would allow rape victims to know the HIV status of their assailants and would hold rapists responsible for transmitting the virus. "Welfare Body Moves to Help AIDS Orphans in Zimbabwe" All Africa Press Service (11/12/96) Welfare groups in Zimbabwe have estimated that 45 percent of the country's children will be orphaned by AIDS within the next decade. Policy-makers are responding by trying to devise a national welfare system to support the orphans. Worldwide, the number of people orphaned by AIDS is greater than the number of people with the disease. In Zimbabwe, welfare organizations are especially concerned about the children of farm workers, and the Farm Orphan Support Trust has begun to create a foster care program for such children. "Food-Health: Impact of AIDS on Food Security" IPS Wire (11/12/96) In some countries where communities depend on food production for survival, AIDS has disproportionately affected those regions by claiming the lives of workers. As HIV spread in Uganda, for example, crop production declined dramatically, pests became more prevalent, and death and illness hurt many households and left many children orphaned. Studies have found that the impact of AIDS will depend on how the disease is spread in a particular area and how policies are implemented. "HIV Infection on Surge in Ukraine Penitentiaries" Itar Wire Service (11/11/96) In the Ukraine, 10,800 people are infected with HIV, the Committee for AIDS Control reported Monday. The rate of HIV is highest in the Odessa, Nikilayev, Donetsk, and Lugansk regions, the capital Kiev, and the Crimea enclave. There is also concern about the spread of HIV in prisons, and screening of convicts is thus being considered. "HIV Test-Seeking Before and After the Restriction of Anonymous Testing in North Carolina" American Journal of Public Health (10/96) Vol. 86, No. 10, P. 1446; Hertz-Picciotto, Irva; Lee, Lester W.; Hoyo, Cathrine In North Carolina, state health officials have attempted to discontinue anonymous HIV testing because reporting would allow state agencies to contact both HIV-positive individuals and people that may have been exposed to the virus. A proposal to end anonymous testing in 1991 met with public opposition, and as a compromise, such testing was discontinued in 82 of the state's 100 counties on Sept. 1, 1991. On January 1, 1993, however, anonymous testing was re-implemented in all 100 counties by court order. The elimination of anonymous testing was again proposed in 1996, but lawsuits have prevented the proposal from moving forward. Researchers at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, evaluated the impact of the restriction on anonymous testing in 1991 and 1992. They found that HIV testing increased throughout the state during the period, but that it increased 64 percent in counties where anonymous testing was maintained, compared to 44 percent where it was discontinued. Adolescents, African-Americans, and other non-Whites were reportedly especially affected by the restriction. The findings agree with other reports that eliminating anonymous testing has a detrimental impact on testing rates. "One World, One Hope...One Gender?" Journal of the International Association of Physicians in AIDS Care (10/96) Vol. 2, No. 10, P. 28; Gorma, Robin Amid the promising news of powerful new HIV drugs presented at this year's International AIDS Conference, little data was released about how the new treatments work for women. However, among the issues pertaining to women that were discussed was the link between human pappilloma virus (HPV) and HIV. Research presented at the conference confirmed that, compared to others with HPV, HIV-infected patients have a higher prevalence of neoplasias and squamous intraepithelial lesions (SIL). Furthermore, Dr. Louise Kuhn, of Columbia University, showed that women infected with HIV were four to five times more likely than uninfected women to have persistent HPV infection. A higher incidence of cervical precancer and invasive cervical cancer (ICC) was also found in HIV-positive women, though no research was presented on how to treat HIV-positive women with the condition. Other topics discussed at the conference included the link between violence against women and HIV risk, the acceptance of female condoms by women, the need for microbicides against HIV, the need for more research into the sexual transmission of HIV, and the prevention of perinatal HIV transmission.