Date: Fri, 23 Aug 1996 09:50:47 -0400 From: "Flynn Mclean" Subject: CDC AIDS Daily Summary 08/23/96 AIDS Daily Summary August 23, 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 ****************************************************** "AIDS Bike Ride Misses Its Goal" "Reeve's Role Is to Teach" "UPI Science News--[Alternative Therapy May Cause Rare Infection]" "Drug Firm Consolidates Operations" "Green Cross Investigation Escalates" "Foundation Funds Research on PET Imaging of HIV-Positive Patients" "A Strong T Cell Response May Predict Faster Disease Progression in AIDS Patients" "The Legal Strategies Used in Operating Syringe Exchange Programs in the United States" "Annotation: Needle Exchange Programs and the Law--Time for a Change" "Active Tuberculosis Boosts HIV Replication" ****************************************************** "AIDS Bike Ride Misses Its Goal" Philadelphia Inquirer (08/23/96) P. B1; Collins, Huntly Less than one-quarter of the $1.6 million raised by Philadelphia-area participants in the Philadelphia-to-Washington, D.C. AIDS Ride will go to local groups, organizers reported Thursday. The majority of the funds will be used to cover the $1.3 million in expenses, including administrative staff and production fees. Philadelphia's share, to be divided among four local AIDS agencies, was projected at $1 million but only came to $330,740. Washington, D.C. riders, meanwhile, earned $1.6 million for their local AIDS organizations. The shortfall for Philadelphia was attributed to a lack of riders from the area--788 compared to Washington's 1,312. A threatened boycott over race-relations is blamed for the failure to attract more participants. "Reeve's Role Is to Teach" Washington Post (08/23/96) P. C1; Britt, Donna Christopher Reeve's planned appearance at the Democratic National Convention next week can be compared to the appearance of AIDS activists and patients Mary Fisher and Hydeia Broadbent at the Republican National Convention, claims Washington Post columnist Donna Britt. She says both are attempts by the parties to present images of innocent individuals who have been struck with tragedy to attract voters. While such people do elicit emotional responses, Britt says, voters should put more weight in politicians' records. James Millner, a Washington, D.C., AIDS activist points out that President Clinton is the first president to "actively declare his support of people living with AIDS," noting that it's more important to recognize that all disabled people "are human beings--not necessarily partisan beings." "UPI Science News--[Alternative Therapy May Cause Rare Infection]" United Press International (08/22/96); Pezzella, Mike A rare bacterial infection in 47 people in Denver and five people in Wyoming may be caused by an alternative therapy used by patients who are infected with HIV or who are obese to improve their well-being. A Denver doctor reported that 47 of 69 patients treated with "adrenal cortex injection" developed bacterial abscesses. Seventeen of the people needed to have their abscesses treated, but no one died. The doctor warns that the bacteria could be dangerous to HIV-infected individuals. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported the outbreak and is warning people in New Age and alternative medicine communities to stop using the treatment. The CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which has not approved the substance, are investigating the situation. "Drug Firm Consolidates Operations" Toronto Globe and Mail (08/21/96) P. B9; Lem, Gail Pharmacia & Upjohn, which is consolidating its Canadian operations, has announced that it will construct a new $14 million Canadian headquarters in Mississauga and commit $17 million annually to the research and development of new drugs. According to Rich Little, president of the drug maker's Canadian operations, Pharmacia & Upjohn also plans to introduce "two or three significant new products globally each year," and hopes to break into the ranks of the biggest five pharmaceutical firms worldwide. At least six drugs, including three cancer treatments and Rescriptor, an AIDS therapy, are scheduled to be launched next year. Little noted that Pharmacia & Upjohn is concentrating a large part of its research and development dollars on developing new drugs to treat HIV infection and AIDS. "Green Cross Investigation Escalates" Reuters (08/22/96) Former and incumbent Green Cross executives have been questioned to determine the company's knowledge of the risk involved in using non-heat-treated blood products. One of the former executives questioned, Renzo Matsushita, was also a former official in the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Matsushita has been accused of murder by the family of a patient who died of AIDS last year. "Foundation Funds Research on PET Imaging of HIV-Positive Patients" Reuters (08/22/96) A four-year research project on Positron Emission Tomography imaging in HIV-positive patients at the University of California at Los Angeles will be supported by a $160,000 grant from the McCarthy Family Foundation. Researchers will study HIV and its mechanisms, focusing on the establishment of major sites of infection at different stages of disease, kinetics of viral production and clearance at different stages, and the efficacy of drug therapies. "A Strong T Cell Response May Predict Faster Disease Progression in AIDS Patients" Reuters (08/22/96) A higher proliferation of T cells in response to HIV and opportunistic pathogens is associated with more rapid disease progression, researchers at the University of California, San Diego, report in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. Rachel D. Schrier and colleagues found that, although increased T cell generation in response to HIV and other viruses was associated with protection against short-term impairment of the central nervous system, it predicted faster disease progression. "The Legal Strategies Used in Operating Syringe Exchange Programs in the United States" American Journal of Public Health (08/96) Vol. 86, No. 8; P. 1161; Burris, Scott; Finucane, David; Gallagher, Heather; et al. Needle exchange programs have been stymied by laws that prohibit the distribution of drug injection equipment or require a prescription for the sale of needles. Such laws, on the books in 46 states and the District of Columbia, can deter government agencies and other sources of support from funding syringe exchanges, and can keep such programs from operating effectively. Only Alaska, Iowa, North Dakota, and South Carolina do not have drug paraphernalia legislation. Researchers at Temple Law School, led by Scott Burris JD, studied the legal basis for existing syringe exchange programs in the United States, reviewing statutes, court decisions, published studies of exchange programs, and news stories. They also conducted telephone interviews with syringe exchange personnel. The authors report that 27 exchange programs operate with authorization by amendments or judicial interpretations of state drug laws, or they exist in states that have no needle laws. At least 13 programs were found to operate under claims of legality based on local definition of state law, while nine others operate with no claim to legality at all. These latter programs are able to continue because local authorities, for a number of reasons, use their discretion to not arrest or prosecute individuals involved in exchanges. The authors note that their research shows the existence of several syringe exchanges that are not operating illegally, adding that ultimately the programs' efficacy in reducing HIV transmission will likely result in legislation nationwide. Until then, Burris et al. suggest that public officials and syringe exchange supporters work to develop local consensus and seek authorization under local public health laws to legally operate such programs. "Annotation: Needle Exchange Programs and the Law--Time for a Change" American Journal of Public Health (08/96) Vol. 86, No. 8, P. 1077; Glanz, Leonard H.; Mariner, Wendy K. Current objections to providing clean needles to injection drug users are similar to those held in World War I against distributing condoms to U.S. soldiers, and are just as harmful to public health, claim Leonard H. Glanz of Boston University and Wendy K. Mortimer, a contributing editor to the Journal of Public Health. In an annotation appearing in the journal, the authors point out that, although abstinence was recommended to U.S. soldiers in World War I, more than 383,000 were still diagnosed with venereal diseases. Similarly, opponents of needle exchanges have argued that abstinence was the only way to prevent the transmission of HIV through needles and that providing clean needles would encourage increased drug use. Research on needle exchanges, however, provides evidence that they reduce the spread of HIV, and that drug use does not increase as a result. The authors hold that laws restricting the distribution of clean needles do not prevent drug users from injecting drugs, and jeopardize disease prevention efforts. They urge that such laws be changed to legitimize needle exchanges so they may operate more effectively. "Active Tuberculosis Boosts HIV Replication" Lancet (08/10/96) Vol. 348, No. 9024, P. 393; McCarthy, Michael Active Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in HIV-positive individuals can increase plasma HIV levels by as much as 160 times, researchers report in the August issue of the Journal of Immunology. Studies of seven HIV-infected patients with active M. tuberculosis (TB) infection revealed that the plasma HIV load rose from 5 times to 160 times. The viral load declined after the patients' TB infection was treated successfully, but elevated viral loads remained in those patients for whom treatment failed. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, says the findings may explain why HIV progresses more quickly in areas with high rates of M. tuberculosis infection and why HIV is transmitted more easily in these populations.