                     AIDS Daily Summary 
                     November 17, 1995

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 Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction
of this text is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC
Clearinghouse should be cited as the source of this information.
Copyright 1995, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD


************************************************************
"Drug Is Found to Bar Infection by an AIDS-Type Virus"
"Study: Medicaid, AIDS Deaths Linked"
"HIV Patients Warned About D.C.'s Water"
"AIDS on Rise in Latin America--Experts"
"Bone Implant Infection Risk Combated"
"Patient of Dentist with AIDS May Get Economic Damages"
"Reducing the Risk of HIV Infection Among South African Sex 
Workers: Socioeconomic and Gender Barriers"
************************************************************

"Drug Is Found to Bar Infection by an AIDS-Type Virus"
New York Times (11/17/95) P. A25;  Kolata, Gina
     Researchers report in the journal Science that a drug called PMPA
completely prevented one group of monkeys from becoming infected 
with the simian immunodeficiency virus, or SIV.  In the study, 
none of the 25 monkeys who were given Gilead Sciences' 
experimental drug before or up to 24 hours after they were 
inoculated became SIV-infected, while all ten of the monkeys 
injected with salt water before inoculation with SIV contracted 
the disease.  The scientists--led by Dr. Che-Chung Tsai of the 
Regional Primate Research Center at the University of Washington 
in Seattle--caution about jumping to conclusions about preventing
HIV-infection or treating individuals who are already infected, 
but say they are greatly encouraged by the findings.  Human 
studies, which are tentatively scheduled for 1996, would be 
required to determine PMPA's safety and efficacy in people.  
Related Stories: Philadelphia Inquirer (11/17) P. A2; USA Today 
(11/17) P. 1D; Washington Times (11/17) P. A3
      
"Study: Medicaid, AIDS Deaths Linked"
Philadelphia Inquirer (11/17/95) P. A2;  Ritter, Malcolm
     People with AIDS who are hospitalized for what appears to be 
Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) are 73 percent more likely 
to die in the hospital if they are covered by Medicaid instead of
private insurance, a new study claims.  Researcher Charles 
Bennett noted that if planned Medicaid budget cuts are enacted, 
"this [problem] will only get worse."  The study of nearly 900 
patients in 56 hospitals in Chicago, Miami, and Los Angeles also 
revealed that Medicaid recipients are about 40 percent less 
likely to get a definitive test to diagnose the common 
HIV-related pneumonia.  These people therefore have a greater 
risk of being treated for PCP while actually having a different 
illness, such as tuberculosis or viral and bacterial infections. 
Bennett said that this failure to treat the true disease could 
explain the higher death rates.
      
"HIV Patients Warned About D.C.'s Water"
Washington Post (11/17/95) P. A15;  Kyriakos, Marianne
     The Whitman-Walker Clinic, the largest AIDS clinic in the 
Washington, D.C. area, and the National Association of People 
With AIDS warned AIDS patients on Thursday not to drink the 
city's tap water for fear of bacterial infections.  A spokesman 
for the two groups said that people with weakened immune systems 
should drink bottled water or boiled tap water.  The alert was 
prompted by continuing problems with bacteria in the District's 
aging drinking-water pipes. In October, standard tests of tap 
water throughout the city found unusually high levels of 
bacteria.  But officials from both the Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA) and the city claim there is no reason for panic.  W.
Michael McCabe, the EPA's regional administrator, said, "I want 
to emphasize that at the present time, we don't feel there is a 
public health threat."
      
"AIDS on Rise in Latin America--Experts"
Reuters (11/16/95)
     Health experts predict that an estimated 1 million Latin 
Americans could have AIDS by the turn of the century and that 
more effective campaigns must therefore be developed to prevent 
the spread of HIV.  "Most people in the region know about AIDS 
and how to prevent it, but we need to convert this into action," 
explained Fernando Zacarias, coordinator of the Pan American 
Health Organization's regional program on AIDS.  The group said 
that HIV infection is increasing among women, particularly those 
in the Caribbean and Central America, and that it is expected to 
increase rapidly in other areas, such as those regions where 
injection drug abuse is rising.  According to the organization's 
statistics, there are currently 2 million HIV-infected people in 
Latin America and the Caribbean.
      
"Bone Implant Infection Risk Combated"
Richmond Times-Dispatch (11/16/95) P. E1;  Orndorff, Beverly
     LifeNet, the organ procurement agency that serves central and 
eastern Virginia, has developed and implemented a new bone 
cleansing technology that attempts to eliminate the risk of 
disease transmission from processed cadaver bone implants.  The 
process, called Allowash, uses a mixture of biological detergents
to lower the amounts of bone marrow and fatty components of 
processed bones; these two factors are thought to be harbors for 
any viruses that the donor may have had.  LifeNet says that such 
disease transmission is rare, about one in nearly 3 billion, but 
that it has happened.  Four years ago, three patients who 
received bone tissue via LifeNet subsequently tested 
HIV-positive.  The fresh-frozen tissue came from a donor who had 
apparently become infected with weeks of his death, and not 
enough time had yet passed for the infection to be detected by 
tests.
      
"Patient of Dentist with AIDS May Get Economic Damages"
National Law Journal (10/30/95) Vol. 18, No. 9, P. B21
     The Supreme Court of Delaware ruled in September that although a 
patient could not collect damages for treatment by a healthcare 
professional who had AIDS without evidence of ensuing injury or 
HIV-exposure, economic damages could be recovered for 
misrepresentation.  Brzoska v. Olsen involved 38 people who sued 
the estate of their late dentist for negligence, battery, and 
misrepresentation.  The Supreme Court affirmed in part the 
decision of the superior court, ruling that there could be no 
recovery for fear of becoming infected with the disease absent 
any evidence of physical harm.  Furthermore, the court concluded 
that the plaintiffs could not recover damages under battery as a 
matter of law.  Recovery of economic damages was possible, 
however, for those plaintiffs to whom the defendant had made a 
direct claim that he did not have AIDS and subsequently provided 
treatment.
      
"Reducing the Risk of HIV Infection Among South African Sex 
Workers: Socioeconomic and Gender Barriers"
American Journal of Public Health (11/95) Vol. 85, No. 11, P. 
1521;  Karim, Quarraisha Abdool;  Karim, Salim S. Abdool;  
Soldan, Kate; et al.
     Karim et al. undertook a study of female sex workers at a truck 
stop in South Africa to determine the social context that places 
them at high risk for infection with HIV, and how this context 
influences their risk-reduction capabilities.  Ten in-depth 
interviews and 12 questionnaires revealed that the 12 
respondents, whose mean age was 25.9, had a total of 266 clients 
each week.  There was a high degree of knowledge concerning HIV 
etiology, modes of transmission, prognosis, and prevention 
methods among the sex workers, indicating previous educational 
efforts by one of the authors.  But seven of the women said they 
were not using any form of contraception.  Government clinics 
provided condoms; however, three women with an average of 84 
clients per week never asked clients to use them.  Of the 
remaining nine respondents, seven claimed that most clients would
not accept their use, and only three of those seven denied those 
clients sex.  These women also faced a high degree of violence, 
and several reported that clients were more likely to be 
aggressive when condoms were either used or suggested.  To reduce
the sex workers' HIV risk, the authors suggest the use of 
negotiation and communication skills, information and access to 
barrier methods they can use and control, and improved access to 
health care.
      
