| prevention-news@cdcnpin.org 2004-10-19, 7:19 pm |
| CDC HIV/STD/TB Prevention News Update
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
The CDC National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention provides the follo=
wing information as a public service only. Providing synopses of key scie=
ntific articles and lay media reports on HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmi=
tted diseases and tuberculosis does not constitute CDC endorsement. The f=
ollowing summaries were prepared without conducting any additional resear=
ch or investigation into the facts and statements made in the articles be=
ing summarized, and therefore readers are expressly cautioned against rel=
ying on the validity or invalidity of any statements made in these summar=
ies. This daily update also includes information from CDC and other gover=
nment agencies, such as background on Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Repo=
rt (MMWR) articles, fact sheets and announcements. Reproduction of this t=
ext is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC HIV/STD/T=
B Prevention News Update should be cited as the source of the
information. Contact the sources of the articles abstracted below for ful=
l texts of the articles.
HEADLINES
NATIONAL NEWS
UNITED STATES: =93Under the Radar, HIV Worsens=94
ARIZONA: =93AIDS Group, Its Walk at End=94
ARKANSAS: =93Governor Says No to Funding for Drug Plan=94
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
GLOBAL: =93Slow Funds Flow Hampers AIDS Drug Plan =97 WHO=94
VIETNAM: =93UN: AIDS Stigma in Vietnam Among Worst=94
MEDICAL NEWS
SOUTH AFRICA: =93National Cross Sectional Study of Views on Sexual Violen=
ce and Risk of HIV Infection and AIDS Among South African School Pupils=94
LOCAL AND COMMUNITY NEWS
NEBRASKA: =93UNO Uses Some Humor to Tackle Sexual Diseases=94
NEWS BRIEFS
NEW JERSEY: =93Needle Exchange on the Ropes=94
UNITED KINGDOM: =93Province Hit by Syphilis Outbreak=94
GEORGIA: =93TB Tests Ordered for Staff, Students=94
ZAMBIA: =93Zambians Urged to Go for HIV/AIDS Test=94
************************************************************
NATIONAL NEWS=09
************************************************************
UNITED STATES:
=93Under the Radar, HIV Worsens=94
Los Angeles Times (10.16.04)::Sharon Bernstein
Complacency about HIV/AIDS and a willingness to take risks that woul=
d have been unthinkable at the epidemic's height stem from the progress d=
octors and public health officials have made in controlling the disease, =
several experts said. =93There's a perception that HIV or AIDS is no long=
er a big threat, so why bother=94 using condoms or abstaining from unprot=
ected sex, said Ronald O. Valdiserri, head of HIV programs for CDC.
=93There's a lot of misinformation,=94 said Dr. Anthony Fauci, direc=
tor of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. =93It's=
troubling=85. We've been through a terrible period in our history and no=
w we seem to be regressing back.=94
One misperception is that antiretrovirals have eliminated AIDS as a =
major public health threat. =93The drugs were rolled out without really t=
hinking through their implications for risk behavior,=94 said Thomas Coat=
es, a UCLA infectious disease specialist. =93There was a resurgence in hi=
gh-risk behavior, and prevention was off the map.=94
Critics said CDC's change in strategy two years ago =97 from a gener=
al educational campaign to one to teach people with HIV/AIDS how to avoid=
spreading it =97 has lessened awareness of HIV/AIDS outside the most aff=
ected groups. However, CDC's strategy, which includes testing programs de=
signed to help people find out their status, is a proven public health ap=
proach to infectious disease control. The Bush administration's promotion=
of abstinence over condom use does not focus on ways for sexually active=
people to prevent transmission, critics also said. The two strategy shif=
ts have made it more difficult to reach young women and gay men who do no=
t have the disease, said AIDS activists.
The number of people diagnosed annually with HIV has stayed at about=
40,000 for several years. An additional 42,000 are diagnosed with AIDS e=
ach year. New HIV infections among gay men are rising, and the number of =
women with AIDS has quadrupled since 1986. In 2002, African Americans acc=
ounted for half of all new AIDS cases, and Latinos accounted for 20 perce=
nt, according to CDC. More than a quarter of AIDS cases are now women, ma=
ny of them black or Latina. According to the National Center for Health S=
tatistics, black females ages 15 and older are 15.5 times more likely to =
die of AIDS than whites.
ARIZONA:
=93AIDS Group, Its Walk at End=94
East Valley Tribune (10.19.04)::Jennifer Ryan
The board of one of the state's oldest AIDS service organizations, A=
IDS Project Arizona, announced Monday that the agency has closed. APA's b=
oard of directors also cancelled the high-profile AIDS Walk Arizona, sche=
duled for Nov. 7. APA's programs and files have been turned over to Maric=
opa County and state officials. Other AIDS groups are helping to transfer=
APA's more than 2,500 clients into their programs. About 20 APA staff we=
re laid off.
According to APA board and staff members, the nonprofit suffered fro=
m financial problems, leadership changes, staff turnover and a backlash f=
rom the gay community. The 21-year-old organization relied heavily on gov=
ernment funding =97 considered by industry experts to be a financial risk=
.. Arcelious Stephens, APA's board chair, said the agency was running into=
difficulty in receiving payments from the county because of disagreement=
s over what services were eligible for reimbursement. Those problems, com=
bined with federal funding cuts to APA next year, left the board with no =
option but to close, said Stephens.=20
Dr. Jonathan Weisbuch, Maricopa County's director of public health, =
said every effort had been made to pay APA in a timely manner for service=
s. But APA had not billed for the level of services it agreed to provide =
and it billed for services it could not demonstrate were provided, as req=
uired by federal law, he said. Those reimbursements equal no more than $2=
5,000 =97 not enough to have bailed the agency out, said Weisbuch.
To cover APA's final payroll, the agency used money raised to date b=
y the AIDS walk and then cancelled the event, Stephens said. =93It's not =
something we wanted to do, it's something we were forced to do so employe=
es could have a last pay day.=94 Scott Hummel, director of AIDS Walk Ariz=
ona, said there will still be a walk Nov. 7, even if it is just a handful=
of people. =93We'll take it back to the grass-roots level. That's where =
it started,=94 Hummel added.
ARKANSAS:
=93Governor Says No to Funding for Drug Plan=94
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (10.16.04)::Nell Smith
Gov. Mike Huckabee has decided not to use any of his discretionary f=
unds to cover an expected $160,000 budget shortfall in Arkansas' AIDS Dru=
g Assistance Program between now and the end of the program's funding per=
iod March 31, a letter from his office said. =93After speaking with the H=
ealth Department and consulting with the governor regarding his emergency=
fund, it became evident that the governor does not have access to enough=
money to substantially benefit the ADAP program,=94 Chris Pyle, health a=
nd human services policy adviser to Huckabee, wrote in the Oct. 5 letter.=
=20
Huckabee's decision means the Health Department, which runs the $3 m=
illion program, will have to find alternative means to cover the shortfal=
l. The department said it may have to remove some patients from the progr=
am to keep it solvent; its initial estimates show that 32 people could be=
affected. Officials have not determined how patients will be selected fo=
r removal from ADAP.
Health Department officials said the removal decision does not mean =
the 433 patients enrolled in ADAP will go without medicine, however. Offi=
cials are working with pharmaceutical makers in an effort to transfer som=
e of its patients to the companies' charity drug programs.=20
The idea of removing patients from ADAP is a =93screwball decision,=94=
said state Rep. Jay Bradford (D-White Hall), chair of the House Public H=
ealth, Welfare and Labor Committee. The Health Department could easily fi=
nd $160,000 in its $278 million budget, said Bradford. Health Department =
officials estimate that ADAP's actual shortfall for the year will be $590=
,000. A combination of funding from salary savings, Medicaid retroactive =
billing and travel funds will cover all but $160,000 of the shortfall, ac=
cording to the department.=20
Bradford said he will ask that Huckabee =93take another look=94 at h=
is discretionary fund. =93The sole purpose of this [fund] is to address e=
mergencies of this nature,=94 said Bradford.
************************************************************
INTERNATIONAL NEWS=09
************************************************************
GLOBAL:
=93Slow Funds Flow Hampers AIDS Drug Plan =97 WHO=94
Reuters (10.15.04)::Stephanie Nebehay
Dr. Jim Yong Kim, director of the HIV/AIDS department at the World H=
ealth Organization, said Friday that WHO's =93three by five=94 plan has f=
allen behind schedule. The WHO goal is for 3 million HIV-positive people =
in Africa, Asia and Latin America to be on antiretroviral therapy by the =
end of 2005. The program is estimated to cost up to $6 billion.
=93The problem is the money is not flowing as well as it should,=94 =
said Kim. =93We just need to catch up.=94 The WHO had hoped to have half =
a million people on ARVs by the end of June. Currently, only 440,000 of t=
he six million HIV/AIDS patients in the developing world get the drugs th=
ey need.
Kim said places like Zambia, Swaziland and Lesotho are increasing th=
e number of sites that can deliver ARV therapy, and that China and India =
are improving their capacity to deliver drugs.
The World Bank, President Bush's emergency fund and the Global Fund =
to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria have contributed money to the project; WHO =
provides technical help. Kim said the funds are available but disbursemen=
t has been slow while countries train people and get drug-delivery system=
s in place. He noted that other treatment scale-up projects begin slowly =
at first, but =93when all the elements are in place then it goes up very,=
very rapidly.=94
Kim urged pharmaceutical companies to develop cheap generic ARVs for=
children in developing countries. =93We need pediatric formulations very=
badly,=94 he said. =93We think that 15 to 20 percent of deaths from HIV =
are children, yet less than one percent of people on treatment are kids.=94
WHO, UNICEF and Doctors Without Borders will hold talks with drug ma=
kers on the issue in Geneva in November.
VIETNAM:
=93UN: AIDS Stigma in Vietnam Among Worst=94
Associated Press (10.18.04)
After visiting Ho Chi Minh City, Haiphong and Hanoi, UNAIDS Executiv=
e Deputy Director Kathleen Cravero said if Vietnam does not reverse the s=
tigma associated with HIV/AIDS, efforts to help those with the virus will=
be impeded. While praising Vietnam's comprehensive national HIV/AIDS str=
ategy =97 a long-term approach that includes prevention and care =97 Crav=
ero warned that stigma and discrimination could drive the epidemic underg=
round. =93If people fear stigma and discrimination=85 they won't seek tes=
ting, they won't seek services, they won't seek any help at all,=94 she s=
aid.
HIV/AIDS often falls under the Vietnamese government's =93social evi=
ls=94 policy, associating the disease with drug use and prostitution. Cra=
vero stressed that there is still time to fix the problem of stigma and d=
iscrimination by quickly implementing the government's national strategy =
and by those living with the disease taking a leading role alongside high=
-ranking government leaders and organizations.
=93All too often we have national strategies in countries that end u=
p on shelves as very readable documents that don't mean very much on the =
ground,=94 Cravero said. =93Now is the time =97 in the coming months and =
in the next two years =97 that Vietnam must take this excellent strategy =
and make it real for the people of Vietnam from the very north to the ver=
y south.=94
************************************************************
MEDICAL NEWS=09
************************************************************
SOUTH AFRICA:
=93National Cross Sectional Study of Views on Sexual Violence and Risk of=
HIV Infection and AIDS Among South African School Pupils=94
British Medical Journal (10.14.04)::Neil Andersson; Ari Ho-Foster; Judith=
Matthis; Nobantu Marokoane; Vincent Mashiane; Sharmila Mhatre; Steve Mit=
chell; Tamara Mokoena; Lorenzo Monasta; Ncumisa Ngxowa; Manuel Pascual Sa=
lcedo; Heidi Sonnekus
The authors conducted a national cross sectional study to investigat=
e school pupils' views on sexual violence, their experience of sexual vio=
lence, and their views on the risk of HIV/AIDS. Researchers administered =
voluntary questionnaires to 269,705 pupils in South African schools, ages=
10-19 in grades 6-11.=20
The study explored the following views on sexual abuse: a person has=
to have sex to show love; sexual violence does not include touching; sex=
ual violence does not include forced sex with someone you know; girls mea=
n yes when they say no; girls like sexually violent guys; girls who are r=
aped ask for it; and girls enjoy being raped. The investigators used thre=
e or more of the eight beliefs as a summary measure of misconceptions abo=
ut sexual violence. The authors defined views that would put someone at h=
igh risk of HIV infection as the belief that sex with a virgin can cure H=
IV/AIDS, belief that condoms cannot protect against HIV, having no intent=
ion of taking an HIV test, having no intention of informing the family if=
one is HIV positive, and intending to spread HIV if positive.
Between September-November 2002, students from 5,162 classes in 1,41=
8 South African schools answered the questionnaire. The researchers found=
that males were more likely than females to have misconceptions about se=
xual violence; that younger respondents were more likely than older ones =
to believe that sexual violence does not include touching, that forcing s=
ex with someone you know is not sexual violence, and that girls do not ha=
ve the right to refuse sex with their boyfriends.
=93South African school pupils seem to have internalized their risk =
of sexual abuse into misconceptions about sexual violence and about the r=
isk of HIV infection and AIDS,=94 the authors wrote. =93Participants who =
claimed to have been forced to have sex were more likely to say they had =
forced someone else to have sex and were more likely to have views that w=
ould put them at high risk of HIV infection =97 for example, that sex wit=
h a virgin can cure HIV infection or AIDS, condoms do not protect against=
HIV.=94
The study found that a history of sexual abuse distorts perceptions =
about sexual violence and the risk of HIV, and that youth of both sexes i=
n South Africa have a high prevalence of misconceptions about sexual viol=
ence and HIV risks. =93The apparent expectation of sexual coercion among =
the youth and the associated adaptive attitudes contribute to a culture o=
f sexual violence,=94 the researchers wrote. =93Males and females were af=
fected similarly, showing a reaction to and a reinforcement of their ever=
yday risk of sexual abuse. It is important that those responsible for edu=
cating youth about HIV infections take into account that youth may be cha=
nged by their personal experiences and environment and this is likely to =
condition their reaction to educational messages.=94
The study showed that one in three youth believed they could be HIV =
positive, even though one in four of those had not had sex, =93an indicat=
or of ignorance of the mechanism of HIV infection,=94 the report stated. =
=93This failure of education comes at an important cost: youth who believ=
ed they were HIV positive had misconceptions about sexual violence and ab=
out the risk of HIV infection similar to those who had forced someone els=
e to have sex,=94 the researchers concluded.
The full study was rapid-published Oct. 14 on the British Medical Jo=
urnal Web site (2004, doi:10.1136/bmj.38226.617454.7C). =20
************************************************************
LOCAL AND COMMUNITY NEWS=09
************************************************************
NEBRASKA:
=93UNO Uses Some Humor to Tackle Sexual Diseases=94
Omaha World-Herald (10.15.04)::Bob Glissmann
Troy Bendickson, a resident assistant at the university of Nebraska =
at Omaha, dressed in a giant cream-colored condom costume emblazoned with=
a red =93C=94 and distributed condoms to UNO students last Wednesday out=
side a residence hall on campus near tables displaying brochures on healt=
h services available on campus.
Marcia Adler, director of student health services, said college stud=
ents report they are reluctant to get tested for STDs in their hometowns =
because everyone would know about it. =93This is their first opportunity =
to negotiate these services,=94 Adler said.
According to CDC, Omaha had the 28th-highest per capita rate of chla=
mydia infections among the 60 largest US cities in 2002. One in 33 Dougla=
s County 15-to-24-year-olds had gonorrhea or chlamydia in 2002.
Ramon Henderson, health and wellness chair of the group 100 Black Me=
n of Omaha, said although he personally supports abstinence as a method f=
or preventing STDs, condom distribution efforts such as the one at UNO la=
st Wednesday could prompt youth to =93recognize that casual sex, multiple=
partners, unprotected sex is not safe.=94 He said it is important for pe=
ople in the community to address such issues.
Bendickson, wearing a blue mask and cape with his costume, said, =93=
Initially, it's a great tension breaker. It's not preaching. When you say=
it with humor, sometimes that catches on more with people than finger wa=
ving.=94
************************************************************
NEWS BRIEFS =09
************************************************************
NEW JERSEY:
=93Needle Exchange on the Ropes=94
Newark Star-Ledger (10.15.04)::Tom Hester
Gov. James McGreevy's hope to sign a bill allowing needle-exchange p=
rograms for drug users in New Jersey was dealt a blow recently as opposit=
ion stalled a vote in a key Senate committee, which means the Senate is u=
nlikely to vote on the bill before the governor leaves office next month,=
bill supporters said. The governor had pushed for passage of the law, co=
ntending that clean syringes for drug users would slow the spread of HIV/=
AIDS and other blood-borne diseases. However, opponents argued that provi=
ding syringes would condone illegal drug use and not stop users from shar=
ing needles. The next Senate Health Committee vote on the bill is schedul=
ed for Nov. 8 at the earliest. The next full Senate voting session is sch=
eduled for Dec. 6.
UNITED KINGDOM:
=93Province Hit by Syphilis Outbreak=94
Belfast Telegraph (10.18.04)::Nigel Gould
At a major STD conference in Belfast on Monday, Ulster's Chief Medic=
al Officer, Dr. Henrietta Campbell, said the current outbreak of syphilis=
in the region is a major concern. =93In Northern Ireland, sexual health =
is generally regarded as poor, with high levels of teenage pregnancy and =
[STIs]=85. The figures for syphilis, for example, are now of outbreak pro=
portions with one case presenting to a [Genitourinary] clinic in 2000 com=
pared to 36 in 2003,=94 Campbell said at the conference, =93Sexually Tran=
smitted Infections Addressing the Agenda in Northern Ireland,=94 which at=
tracted speakers from across the United Kingdom. =93A lot of work needs t=
o be done to educate adults and teenagers and to ensure they can access t=
he information and services they need,=94 Campbell said.
GEORGIA:
=93TB Tests Ordered for Staff, Students=94
Atlanta Journal-Constitution (10.16.04)::Laura Diamond
Gwinnett County public health officials will conduct TB skin tests on=
nearly 100 students and staff at Peachtree Ridge High school who came in=
close contact with a student diagnosed with the disease. The free testin=
g is scheduled for Oct. 25. Health officials notified Peachtree Ridge Pri=
ncipal James Kahrs about the infected student late Thursday and a letter =
went out notifying parents on Friday. Parents must sign consent forms for=
their child to be tested, said Vernon Goins, spokesperson for the county=
Health Department. Results will be available two to three days after the=
testing and anyone who needs a follow-up assessment will be contacted by=
the Health Department. The infected student is being treated and has not=
returned to school, said Kahrs.
ZAMBIA:
=93Zambians Urged to Go for HIV/AIDS Test=94
Xinhua News Agency (10.16.04) =20
Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa urged Zambians to go for HIV/AIDS t=
ests so those infected could receive treatment and continue to contribute=
to national development, the local newspaper Daily Mail reported recentl=
y. The president said most of the skilled manpower Zambia is losing could=
have been saved if people had been tested and sought medication if their=
tests were positive. Mwanawasa noted the number of orphans was increasin=
g due to premature deaths among parents with HIV/AIDS. Zambia currently h=
as 620,000 orphans, 6 percent of whom live on the streets. The president =
said the scenario could have been avoided had their parents been tested a=
nd received antiretrovirals to prolong their lives. About 16 percent of Z=
ambia's 11 million people have HIV/AIDS.
************************************************************
The Prevention News Mailing List is maintained by the National Prevention=
Information Network (NPIN), part of the Centers for Disease Control and =
Prevention's National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention. Regular post=
ings include the Prevention News Update, conference announcements, curren=
t funding opportunities, select articles from the Morbidity and Mortality=
Weekly Report series and announcements about new NPIN products and servi=
ces.
To join the PreventioNews listserv, send a blank e-mail to prevention-new=
s-subscribe@cdcnpin.org. For instructions on how to remove yourself from =
the listserv, send a blank e-mail to prevention-news-unsubscribe@cdcnpin.=
org.
You can also join or leave the PreventioNews listserv from the NPIN Web s=
ite at: http://www.cdcnpin.org/scripts/prevention_news.asp.
Back issues of the CDC HIV/STD/TB Prevention News Update can be found at =
http://www.cdcnpin.org/scripts/locates/LocateNews.asp. You can search for=
back issues in the Prevention News Update Database at http://www.cdcnpin=
..org/news/.
We'd like to know what you think of the Prevention News Update. Please ta=
ke a minute to send an e-mail with your comments to update-feedback@cdcnp=
in.org. With your help, we will continue to improve this service to bette=
r meet your information needs.
Please send all other e-mail inquiries to info@cdcnpin.org.
**This message may be copied and distributed; however, it may not be dist=
ributed for profit.**
************************************************************
You are currently subscribed to prevention-news as: ssah-submit@ezmort.co=
m
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-prevention-news-1356515G@listm=
anager.aspensys.com
***********************************************************
For AIDS/HIV+ resources, visit the s.s.a.h+ website at :
http://www.webcom.com/benny/ssah/ssah+.html
***********************************************************
|