                     AIDS Daily Summary 
                       April 1, 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


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"Across the USA: Illinois"
"2nd-Grader Stabs 5 Others with Found Medical Tools"
"Unwelcome Donations"
"Virus Research Drawing International Attention"
"Cognitive Impairment Linked to Early Death in HIV-Infected 
Patients"
"No Benefits Seen in AIDS Patients After Fish Oil 
Supplementation"
"EU Wants Back Money Sank into S. African AIDS Play"
"The Trials of a Home HIV Test"
"Case for Behavioral Studies for AIDS Prevention"
************************************************************

"Across the USA: Illinois"
USA Today (04/01/96) P. 12A
     Florence Schieben, 75, received HIV-infected blood during
1994 hip replacement surgery and is now suing Heartland Blood
Centers.  The Aurora, Ill., blood bank has rejected her claim
that the blood was not tested correctly.
      
"2nd-Grader Stabs 5 Others with Found Medical Tools"
Washington Post (03/30/96) P. H3;  Kyriakos, Marianne
     A second-grader at Stanton Elementary School in Washington,
D.C., discovered a dozen lancets, needlelike medical devices, in
a field near the school and used them to stab five classmates.  
Some parents are concerned that their children may have been 
infected with HIV as a result.  Lancets, which are not hollow and
are not used to inject drugs, are used to prick fingers and ear 
lobes when blood is drawn.  "We know that in the transmission of 
HIV, hollow needles are much more likely to transmit the virus 
than solid needles," said Peter Hawley, medical director for the 
Whitman-Walker Clinic, the area's largest AIDS clinic.  The 
school's principal said several students involved in the incident
have been tested for HIV.
      
"Unwelcome Donations"
Washington Post (03/30/96) P. A15;  Davey, Richard J.
     In a Washington Post letter to the editor, Richard J. Davey,
chief medical officer at the American Red Cross, takes issue with
a Washington Post article that suggested that some men donate 
blood as a way of getting tested for HIV.  Davey objects to the 
article, saying it may have unnecessarily scared people who 
receive blood transfusions.  He argues that the Red Cross opposes
the practice of donating blood for the purpose of getting an HIV 
test, a practice which he says could jeopardize the safety of the
blood supply.
      
"Virus Research Drawing International Attention"
Xinhua News Service (03/29/96)
     The Harbin Veterinary Institute of the Chinese Academy of 
Agricultural Science, which has gained recognition for developing
a cure for horse infectious anemia, has now attracted global 
attention because of similarities between the horse virus and
HIV.  The institute developed the vaccine for the horse virus in
1982, and it remains the only vaccine to prevent the disease. 
The virus is similar to HIV in its mechanism and mutability.  
Researchers from Japan and the United States are seeking to 
cooperate with the Chinese scientists on research to compare the 
two viruses.
      
"Cognitive Impairment Linked to Early Death in HIV-Infected 
Patients"
Reuters (03/29/96)
     New research shows that cognitive impairment is an
independent risk factor for early death from AIDS.  Ronald Ellis
and colleagues at the HNRC Group in San Diego reported the
results of a study of 414 HIV-positive patients.  During the
seven-year study, 106 patients died.  Risk of death was 1.2 times
greater in the globally impaired group, and 3.9 times higher in
those who were found to have cognitive-motor disorder.  In a
related study, N.C. Sacktor and colleagues in Baltimore and Los
Angeles found that a decline in psychomotor performance in HIV
patients predicted the onset of dementia, but not AIDS or death. 
In another study, the incidence of multifocal leukoencephalopathy
in AIDS patients was found to be increasing.
      
"No Benefits Seen in AIDS Patients After Fish Oil 
Supplementation"
Reuters (03/29/96)
     Taking dietary supplements of fish oil for management of
advanced AIDS-related weight loss does not seem to have any
beneficial clinical effects, new research suggests.  Previous
studies in normal patients indicated that the supplements reduced
the production of interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis factor by 
peripheral blood mononuclear cells.  Research also showed that 
the supplements prevented interleukin-1 and tumor necrosis 
anorexia in animals.  Marc K. Hellerstein and colleagues at the 
University of California at San Francisco followed 20 patients 
with weight loss associated with advanced HIV infection.  The 
patients' body weight, percent fat, and fat-free mass stayed the 
same.  Hellerstein concluded that fish oil cannot overcome 
AIDS-related wasting, but may have an effect in stable AIDS 
patients.
      
"EU Wants Back Money Sank into S. African AIDS Play"
Reuters (03/29/96)
     The European Union (EU) said on Friday that it wants the
South African health ministry to return $3.5 million it wrongly
used to fund a lavish but controversial AIDS awareness musical. 
Erwan Fouere, the EU envoy to South Africa, said the money was
not authorized for the production of "Sarafina 2."  Furthermore,
the EU said the ministry had used too much money for the play and
the health ministry did not follow normal procedures before 
allocating the money.
      
"The Trials of a Home HIV Test"
Business Week (03/18/96) No. 3467, P. 56;  Freundlich, Naomi;  
Hamilton, Joan O'C.
     The first home test for HIV was developed by Elliot
Millenson in 1985, but faced opposition from AIDS activists and
the American Medical Association, and was refused for
consideration by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1987. 
Now the test, which Millenson sold to Johnson & Johnson in 1993,
has been submitted to the FDA and could be approved within three
months.  If approved, the test would be sold without prescription
for less than $50.  Users would mail a blood sample to a lab for
analysis.  Test results and counseling would be available over
the phone.  The change in attitude has come in part from lobbying
by J&J, dissatisfaction with current testing, and the belief that
home tests will help curb HIV infection.  The FDA reviewed the
home test in 1990; however, it did not approve it, citing the
lack of face-to-face counseling.  After buying the test from
Millenson, J&J launched an aggressive public relations campaign,
which was boosted by evidence that 42 percent of people at risk
for HIV would use a home test.  Some claimed that J&J paid travel
expenses for doctors and AIDS activists to attend a FDA meeting 
at which they supported the test; however, an investigation found 
no wrongdoing, though questions about the company's methods were 
raised.
      
"Case for Behavioral Studies for AIDS Prevention"
Lancet (03/16/96) Vol. 347, No. 9002, P. 750;  Rowe, Paul M.
     Studies indicate that cutting rates of risky sexual behavior
in half could stop the AIDS epidemic, Thomas J. Coates, director
of the Center for AIDS Prevention Studies at the University of 
California, San Francisco said in a lecture at the National 
Institutes of Health.  Coates cited research that shows that 
behavioral interventions can achieve such reductions.  For 
example, when condom-use rules were implemented at gay sex clubs 
in San Francisco, rates of unprotected sex dropped to almost 
zero.  In India and Thailand, programs to educate prostitutes to 
negotiate condom use led to sharp decreases in rates of venereal 
disease.  Behavioral studies help explain risky sexual practices,
while scientific studies are needed to influence public policy.  
Coates acknowledged that political barriers thwart research on 
sexual behaviors, but noted that "we're talking about things we 
didn't talk about 15 years ago."
      
