Date: Mon, 21 Oct 1996 10:07:02 -0400 From: "Flynn Mclean" Subject: CDC AIDS Daily Summary 10/21/96 AIDS Daily Summary October 21, 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 ****************************************************** "If You'll Need Blood, New Options Offer Some Peace of Mind" "Phila. AIDS Walk Draws Thousands to River Drives" "Medical Realities" "Morrison Hopeful" "New Spermicide Unveiled in Canada" "Japan TV Says HIV-Positive Candidate Wins Seat" "AIDS Campaigns in Poor States Fail Most Women" "Zimbabwean Minister Urged Child Education on AIDS" "False Positives" "The Utility of IgA Antibody to Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 in Early Diagnosis of Vertically Transmitted Infection" ****************************************************** "If You'll Need Blood, New Options Offer Some Peace of Mind" Wall Street Journal (10/21/96) P. B1; Chase, Marilyn New alternatives for people in need of a blood transfusion offer increased protection from HIV and other blood-borne diseases. Blood recycling, which became popular in the 1980s after tennis star Arthur Ashe and others contracted HIV from blood transfusions, can reduce or eliminate the need for a transfusion. Self-donation is another option for people who have elective surgery and the time to plan ahead. Currently, about 5 percent of the blood used in transfusions comes from self-donations. The process costs $25 to $100 more per unit than standard donated blood. Blood that is banked for self-donation usually gets tested for HIV, hepatitis, and other diseases. If it tests positive, however, the blood may still be used but will be labeled to caution handlers. Finally, directed donations, which come from family and friends, have also increased due to the fear of contracting HIV from anonymous donors. "Phila. AIDS Walk Draws Thousands to River Drives" Philadelphia Inquirer (10/21/96) P. B1 Participants in Sunday's 10th annual Philadelphia AIDS Walk raised more than $1.3 million for 62 area AIDS organizations. "We did better than last year ... so we're ecstatic," said Steve Brown of the sponsoring organization From All Walks of Life. "Medical Realities" Washington Post (10/21/96) P. A18; Cohen, Murray J. The federal guidelines proposed for animal-to-human organ transplants overlook the reality that medical care is not affordable for many Americans, claims Murray J. Cohen, in a letter to the editor of the Washington Post. Cohen questions the use of federal research funds to develop therapies that most health care consumers will not be able to afford. He argues that patients in need of treatments, including those with cancer and AIDS, already have difficulty obtaining available therapies. Cohen contends that the guidelines are inadequate, and he says that a better alternative would be to consider the European presumed-consent law, under which everyone is a potential organ donor unless they declare otherwise. "Morrison Hopeful" USA Today (10/21/96) P. 1C HIV-positive fighter Tommy Morrison said his planned comeback fight in Tokyo next month would be stopped immediately for an "uncontrollable" cut. The heavyweight said his comeback, which would partially benefit his AIDS-awareness foundation, will consist of one or two fights. "New Spermicide Unveiled in Canada" Toronto Globe and Mail (10/17/96) P. A16; Immen, Wallace Roberts Pharmaceuticals' Advantage 24, a new spermicide introduced in Canada, has the potential to be a "condomless condom," physicians say. The spermicide--which is currently being tested by the United Nations AIDS program and U.S. National Institutes of Health in Africa and Asia for its effectiveness against HIV, herpes, and chlamydia--is said to lower the risk of sexually transmitted diseases as well as prevent pregnancy. Doctors recommend, however, that it be used in addition to a condom. According to Howard Levine, a researcher with Roberts Pharmaceuticals, laboratory testing has found that only extremely small doses of the product--which blends nonoxynol 9 with a bioadhesive--are needed to kill sexually transmitted viruses, including HIV. "Japan TV Says HIV-Positive Candidate Wins Seat" Reuters (10/20/96) An HIV-positive hemophiliac in Japan has apparently won a seat in parliament, after campaigning that he wanted to inspire others who contracted the virus through unheated blood products. If poll predictions are accurate, Satoru Ienishi, who ran in Sunday's election for the newly formed Democratic Party, would be Japan's only publicly acknowledged HIV-positive parliament member. "AIDS Campaigns in Poor States Fail Most Women" Reuters (10/18/96) Married women in developing nations are at high risk for HIV and are not being reached by HIV prevention programs, a German researcher claims in the British medical journal The Lancet. Doris D'Cruz-Grote found that programs in developing countries attempt to reduce the spread of HIV by targeting prostitutes and others at risk but that married women lack the tools to negotiate safer sex. Grote says these women need comprehensive sex education and sexual health services, including counseling, contraception, and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases. "Zimbabwean Minister Urged Child Education on AIDS" Xinhua News Agency (10/19/96) Parents in Zimbabwe have been urged to teach their children about AIDS in hopes of helping them avoid HIV infection. "We have to be frank with our children because an ignorant child is a vulnerable child," warned Timothy Stamps, Zimbabwe's Minister of Health and Child Welfare. Zimbabwe has the second-highest number of AIDS cases, according to the World Health Organization, with up to 500 people dying of AIDS every week. "False Positives" Barron's (10/14/96) Vol. 76, No. 42, P. 15; Laing, Jonathan R. Despite the success of Novatek International, a biotechnology company, on Wall Street and an aggressive public relations campaign touting its potential, an investigation by Barron's magazine suggests that the company is involved in a stock rig. Novatek's success began in March, when it acquired the rights to market diagnostic tests made by Universal HealthWatch to Latin American countries. Universal makes tests for HIV, hepatitis, cholera, syphilis, and diabetes. Novatek then began a public relations blitz to boost interest in its stock on Wall Street, issuing press releases that reported new multi-million dollar contracts all over South America. Novatek's stock jumped from about $5 share in March to a peak of $13 in early September as a result. However, Barron's discovered that Universal HealthWatch is being sued by another biotech company for misappropriating trade secrets and violating confidentiality agreements. Universal also has only three or four patents instead of the 12 Novatek has reported in its press releases, and is at least a year away from receiving FDA approval of its HIV and hepatitis diagnostic products. Novatek's contracts in Latin America are suspect, moreover, as is the company's investment banker and primary brokerage sponsor, Joseph Roberts & Co. Another questionable factor is William Trainor, who likely controls over 60 percent of Novatek, and has been convicted for fraud and repeatedly charged with other offenses. "The Utility of IgA Antibody to Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 in Early Diagnosis of Vertically Transmitted Infection" Journal of the American Medical Association (10/09/96) Vol. 276, No. 14, P. 1118j; McIntosh, Kenneth To determine the effectiveness of anti-HIV IgA antibody in identifying HIV-positive infants, researchers at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases conducted a study of infants born to HIV-positive mothers at five centers in the United States and Puerto Rico. Blood samples taken from 156 infants were tested at two laboratories using two different methods. The anti-HIV IgA test was found to have moderate sensitivity and high specificity for the diagnosis of HIV infection at six months of age. Lower sensitivity and high specificity resulted from tests performed at one, two, and four months.