The CDC National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention provides the following information as a public service only. Providing synopses of key scientific articles and lay media reports on HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted diseases and tuberculosis does not constitute CDC endorsement. This daily update also includes information from CDC and other government agencies, such as background on Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) articles, fact sheets, press releases, and announcements. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC HIV/STD/TB Prevention News Update should be cited as the source of the information. Contact the sources of the articles abstracted below for full texts of the articles.
Wall Street Journal (www.wsj.com) (03/13/00) P. B16; Chase,
Marilyn
Drug-resistant strains of tuberculosis (TB) are overcoming
Mexico, threatening progress made against the disease. A team of
Mexican and U.S. researchers found that over 28 percent of TB
cases in Orizaba were resistant to rifampin or isoniazid, and
over 10 percent were resistant to both drugs. The World Health
Organization recommends DOTS, or directly observed treatment,
short-course, for the treatment of TB. However, resistant
strains take much longer to cure. Another study in the Mexican
states of Baja California, Sinaloa, and Oaxaca, indicates that
between 3 percent and 50 percent of cases resisted at least one
of three drugs: isoniazid, rifampin, and pyrazinamide. While
ethambutol could help in the fight, the drug would increase
treatment costs by about 30 percent, according to the study led
by Jordan Tappero of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. The two studies are published in today's issue of
the Archives of Internal Medicine (2000;160:630-636,639-644). A
new program joining the four U.S. border states and six Mexican
states aims to cure TB patients who may migrate across the
border.
Columbus Dispatch (www.cd.columbus.oh.us) (03/12/00) P. 1D;
Somerson, Mark D.
Ohio health officials believe that thousands of people with HIV
or AIDS are not being counted by the state because they do not
know they are infected or have not told a hospital or health
provider. Although HIV status is tracked confidentially by the
state, many people are reluctant to let others find out.
Inaccurate counts mean the loss of federal funding, which is
based on AIDS incidence. While the number of newly diagnosed
AIDS cases in the state dropped from 1,300 in 1993 to 542 in
1998, HIV incidence has increased, from 733 cases in 1996 to 924
in 1998. As of December 31, Ohio officials estimated there were
10,000 to 18,000 people living with HIV or AIDS statewide;
however, only 9,716 cases have been reported. It can take years
for some people to seek treatment or be tested. People with HIV
may not be aware they can seek services as easily as those with
AIDS.
"Unsafe Sex in Age of Viagra; Rising HIV Rates Show Seniors
Often"
Austin American-Statesman (www.Austin360.com/news/newstop.htm)
(03/12/00) P. A19; Palmer, Louise, D.
The impotence drug Viagra has many health officials concerned
about the spread of HIV and sexually transmitted diseases among
older Americans. Older people are less likely to practice safe
sex and rarely get tested for disease. R.H. Keller of the
Biodorn clinic in Florida said, "The fastest-growing AIDS rate is
among the geriatric population, and this is somewhat attributable
to Pfizer (Viagra's manufacturer)." Health officials are
concerned that as some older men become more sexually active,
they may not realize that prevention efforts are necessary.
Cultural stereotypes that people over 50 do not have sex are also
problematic. Older women are very vulnerable to HIV and trust
their partners more readily. In addition, older Americans tend
not to ask their partners about possible diseases and may feel
they do not need protection.
Miami Herald Online (www.herald.com) (03/12/00); Vazquez, Annie
The South Miami City Commission has decided to spend $30,000 to
help prevent teen pregnancy and raise AIDS awareness. The money
will be given to the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Center, which
provides counseling and referral services and HIV testing for
South Miami. Mayor Julio Robaina said more teens and senior
citizens are contracting HIV and need counseling. The Miami-Dade
Department of Human Services has found that South Miami's
African-American community has one of the highest HIV/AIDS
concentrations in the county.
Reuters (03/12/00)
The highest rate of syphilis in Nigeria can be found in Talata
Marafa. Located in the northwestern state of Zamfara, the town
reported a 16.8 percent prevalence of syphilis among pregnant
women, compared to a national average of 2.3 percent, according
to the 1999 Federal Ministry of Health study of sexually
transmitted diseases. Under sharia law, which Zamfara adopted
last October, hands are cut off for theft and death is prescribed
for adultery. Reports in Nigerian newspapers indicate that
brothels have since become increasingly popular in non-sharia states
that border Zamfara.
Reuters Health Information Services (03/10/00)
Researchers at Ohio State University in Columbus have found that
as more patients are living longer with HIV, the rate of
emphysema related to smoking in HIV patients is on the rise. In
their study, the scientists identified emphysema in 17 of 114
HIV-seropositive subjects without pulmonary complications, versus
one case in 44 HIV-seronegative controls. The report, published
in the Annals of Internal Medicine (2000;132:369-372), found that
the incidence of emphysema in HIV-seropositive individuals with a
smoking history of 12 pack-years or more was higher than that for
persons in the HIV-seronegative group (37 percent versus O
percent). According to the researchers, the findings show that
young HIV patients--the median age in the study was 33--are
developing emphysema at striking rates, and smoking-related
respiratory symptoms may play an increasingly larger role in the
natural history of HIV.
Kyodo News Service (03/11/00)
A team of Japanese researchers has concluded that long-term
exposure to diesel exhaust may weaken resistance to tuberculosis
(TB). The study included two groups of mice, one of which
inhaled diesel gas from one to nine months, and a control group
that did not inhale the gas. After injecting both groups of mice
with TB germs, the lungs of those mice exposed to exhaust for
six- and nine-month periods had 10 times more granulomas. There
were no significant differences between the mice that inhaled the
gas for one or three months compared to the gas-free mice;
however, the authors reported that the mice that inhaled diesel
exhaust particles had less active macrophages.
Australian Broadcasting Corp. News (03/12/00)
Twelve patients at the Frankston hospital in Victoria, Australia,
received anesthetic from reused syringes, according to a new
report. Although the hospital claims the needles were replaced,
the patients are being offered HIV and hepatitis tests as well as
counseling. An official from Frankston Hospital said the risk of
infection is very small, but the patients are being warned as a
precaution.
"Tuberculosis: Developing a Breath Test"
Business Week (www.businessweek.com) (03/13/00) No. 3672, P. 93;
Crockett, Roger O.
Researchers from the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago
have developed prototypes of an electronic nose that could allow
doctors to detect tuberculosis (TB) by its odor. The prototypes
include a cylinder with electronic sensors and a vibrating
crystal that absorbs bacteria from the air. Although the
"e-nose" still must be made more sensitive, researcher Bill
Penrose notes that it could reduce the amount of time needed to
diagnose TB from six weeks to just minutes.