AIDS Alert Archives – June 1, 2004
June 1, 2004
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Research shows ‘poppers’ use is connected with infection among MSM
Early in the AIDS epidemic, public health officials thought that poppers, a popular party inhalant used by gay men, might be a cause of the disease. When AIDS was proven to be caused by an infectious agent, most people dismissed poppers as having no relevance to HIV. Now, more than 20 years later, research continues to show a strong link between the use of poppers and HIV risk behaviors. -
AIDS is a major killer of African-American women
AIDS has been the No. 1 cause of death among African-American women, ages 25-34, in the United States, and its one of the top causes for African-American women ages 20 to 44, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Moreover, African-American womens share of AIDS cases has been growing steadily in the past decade, and now women represent one-third of all new AIDS cases reported among African-Americans, the CDC data show. -
Some innovative ideas for preventing HIV
The Good Samaritan Project in Kansas City, MO, has HIV prevention and intervention programs for African-American women that draw on the knowledge and experiences of Jean Johnson, an outreach coordinator who also is African-American. A lot of these ideas are my ideas because Im African-American, and I know how to communicate with people who look like me, she says. I place a lot of emphasis on African-Americans with HIV because thats where HIV is now. -
Data reveal high sexual risk among Asian MSMs
Investigators have found a disturbing trend of increased levels of sexual risk behavior among a small, little-studied group: Asian/Pacific Islander (API) men who have sex with men (MSM). Sexual risk behavior among this group has increased at a faster rate than with white MSM. This includes increases in unprotected anal intercourse with multiple partners, which rose from 12% in 1999 to 20% in 2002, compared with an increase from 19% to 20% in white MSM. -
HIV and older Americans: Forgotten in AIDS focus?
Older Americans always have accounted for about 10% of the HIV population, but in Florida their share of the epidemic runs to 14% of the population, and the fastest growing rate of people newly diagnosed with HIV are women older than 50. -
FDA Notifications
FDA approves Hep C drugs; Oral fluid-based rapid HIV test approved. -
Updated antiretroviral guidelines available
The Guidelines for the Use of Antiretroviral Agents in HIV-1-Infected Adults and Adolescents were updated March 23 and are available at the AIDS info web site. The guidelines were developed and updated by the panel on Clinical Practices for Treatment of HIV Infection, convened by the Department of Health and Human Services. -
Common Sense About AIDS
Using poppers could increase the risk of HIV infection. An expert answers all of your poppers questions. -
The Evolution of Antiretroviral Therapy: Applying Clinical Trial Data to Optimize HAART in the Management of HIV
The primary therapeutic goals when initiating therapy in patients infected with HIV are maximal and long-lasting suppression of viral replication, maintenance or restoration of immunologic function, improvement of quality of life, and reduction of HIV-related morbidity and mortality.(1) Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) using combinations of antiretroviral agents has been shown to achieve these goals to a significant degree and reduce morbidity and mortality in the population of HIV-infected patients.