AIDS Alert Archives – November 1, 2004
November 1, 2004
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New classes of HIV inhibitors raise promise for future treatments
HIV researchers acknowledge its difficult to stay ahead of a virus that can remain deadly after major mutations, but theyre hopeful a variety of new antiretroviral strategies will improve the long-term outlook for HIV patients. -
Assembly inhibitors offer hope for future treatment
Some very early research into a nontraditional target holds promise for a new line of defense against HIV in decades to come. New compounds that are tentatively being called maturation or assembly inhibitors provide a very early target in HIVs activity within the body, researchers say. -
Study finds depression higher among inpatients
When New Orleans investigators analyzed data about HIV patients who were hospitalized and those who werent, what they found was surprising: Only a few significant differences existed between these groups, and one of the most prominent was that depression was more common among the hospitalized group. -
Attention HIV doctors: You’re doing a good job
HIV patients surveyed about their medical care reported overall satisfaction, although many continued to experience side effects, a new study reports. They still said they were satisfied with their treatment and care and the physicians decisions, says Jeffrey Smith, director of clinical research at the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amFar) in New York City. -
HCV rates outpacing HIV in NYC, study finds
New research in New York City shows that injection drug users (IDUs) are acquiring hepatitis C (HCV) at a faster rate than HIV. Investigators looked for a correlation between HCV and HIV among IDUs in the Bronx, Harlem, and other areas, and were surprised to find that where there were high HCV rates, there were not necessarily high HIV rates. -
Access to affordable drugs hinges on competition
Developing nations with greater market competition for antiretrovirals and more generic drugs tend to have cheaper antiretrovirals available through the private sector, according to a new study. -
Internet use for dating tied to sexual risk taking
The phenomenon of people searching Internet sites for sex partners apparently is common among the general population and not just among men who have sex with men (MSM), according to a new study. A random digit-dialing survey of more than 900 people in Seattle between the ages of 18 and 39 found that 18% of those surveyed had searched for sex partners on the Internet, and 3% had met with sex partners whom they contacted on-line. -
AIDS Alert International: Breast-feeding guidelines: An implementation puzzle
In the United States, its a case for the courts when an HIV-infected mother wishes to breast-feed. In most of the nations where HIV proliferates, women are faced with a Sophies choice: Should they breast-feed and risk transmitting HIV to their infant, or should they use substitute nutrition, which may place their infant at greater risk of dying within the first year? -
AIDS Alert International: Programs aim to reduce MTCT in poor nations
There are no easy answers to preventing HIV transmission between HIV-infected mothers and their nursing infants, but a number of programs have developed strategies for reducing the risk among women in poor nations.