                     AIDS Daily Summary
                     September 30, 1994

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 1994, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD


************************************************************
"A Painful French Scandal Is Mined with Official's Trial"
"Across the USA: Pennsylvania"
"$1 Million Grant Will Aid Homeless Youths With the AIDS Virus"
"American AIDS Group Takes Battle to Asia"
"AZT, Perinatal Transmission: Unanswered Questions"
"Surviving the Second Wave"
"Setting Standards"
"Medical Briefs: Mucosal Candidiasis Therapy"
"Nothing Happened"
"A Community in Denial"
************************************************************

"A Painful French Scandal Is Mined with Official's Trial"
Philadelphia Inquirer (09/30/94) P. A1;  Polman, Dick
     Laurent Fabius, a former French premier, will face criminal 
charges today in connection with the distribution of HIV-tainted 
blood.  Two other ministers, Georgina Dufoix and Edmond Herve, 
have already been charged with conspiracy to poison.  Fabius is 
expected to deny any knowledge that, in 1985, hemophiliacs 
received HIV-tainted Factor 8, a blood clotting agent.  In 1984, 
the risks of tainted blood had been announced by the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention.  During a May 1985 meeting, 
French health officials reported that their stocks of donated 
blood contained HIV and declared that, due to a better treatment 
process, American blood was cleaner.  The contaminated blood, 
however, was kept in circulation because destroying it would have
"economic consequences."  Fabius admits that he did not act until
the end of June and that the tainted blood products were not 
removed until early autumn.  The court will determine whether 
Fabius is criminally negligent or not.
      
"Across the USA: Pennsylvania"
USA Today (09/30/94) P. 5A
     Pennsylvania Governor Casey signed a bill requiring sex offenders
convicted of crimes involving intercourse to be tested for HIV.  
The victim will be informed of the results.
      
"$1 Million Grant Will Aid Homeless Youths With the AIDS Virus"
Houston Chronicle (09/29/94) P. 26A;  Lum, Lydia
     The Houston Institute for the Protection of Youth received a $1 
million federal grant that will help HIV-positive young people 
get off the streets and lead independent lives.  Officials hope 
that the project, which will begin in January and continue for 
three years, will help slow the spread of the virus that causes 
AIDS.  Although numerous programs assist homeless people, this is
one of the few that target homeless teens with HIV, who are often
gay.  In the United States, more than 25 percent of gay and 
lesbian youths leave home because of family problems due to their
sexuality.  Teens also make up approximately 20 percent of 
HIV-infected Americans.  HIPY will provide stipends for rent and 
bills until the youths have steady jobs, and will teach them 
basic living skills--such as household chores and how to balance 
a checkbook.  The grant will enable HIPY to help about 60 
homeless people, ages 16-23, for about 18 months each.
      
"American AIDS Group Takes Battle to Asia"
Reuters (09/28/94)
     The American Foundation for AIDS Research, the largest AIDS 
foundation in the United States, is taking its campaign against 
the disease to Asia.  AmFAR's policy is to target places where it
can make the greatest difference--which means that the foundation
will have to concentrate on places where AIDS has not become a 
significant problem, but is likely to become one.  The group has 
found it most effective to work through existing non-government 
organizations and can piggy-back on literacy programs or programs
that help street children and, at the same time, use them to 
promote AIDS education.  AmFAR--due to limited funds--has decided
to exclude countries where the AIDS epidemic has advanced too far
for them to make an impact, such as India or Zaire.  The 
organization plans to take its fund-raising campaign to places 
such as Hong Kong or Thailand.
      
"AZT, Perinatal Transmission: Unanswered Questions"
AIDS Treatment News (09/16/94) No. 207, P. 7;  Trewartha, Rae
     Many questions stem from the finding that use of AZT by pregnant 
women can reduce HIV transmission from mother to infants by 
two-thirds.  The study focused on a specific group of 
HIV-infected pregnant women, but leaves other women uncertain how
they are affected by the results.  Other unanswered questions 
include whether the full study AZT regimen is necessary; whether 
there are long-term side effects to the baby; whether the 
mother's viral load is a factor in the perinatal transmission 
rate; and whether AZT will work as well in future pregnancies.   
The U.S. Public Health Service, which published recommendations 
for the administration of AZT to pregnant women and their babies,
acknowledges that the study results "are directly applicable only
to women with characteristics similar to those of the women who 
entered the study, and the long-term risks of [AZT] used in this 
manner are not known."  The author stresses that in order to have
healthy babies, high-quality prenatal care is essential.
      
"Surviving the Second Wave"
Newsweek (09/19/94) Vol. 124, No. 12, P. 50;  Rogers, Patrick
     A second wave of the AIDS epidemic is sweeping the gay community 
after years of effectively controlling the disease.  Studies show
an increase in unprotected anal intercourse and in the annual 
rate of HIV infection among gay men under 30.  AIDS educators are
promoting monogamy and self-esteem, and are trying to head off 
the despair that they believe leads to high-risk behavior.  There
is a fatalistic philosophy among some in the gay community that 
because there have been so many AIDS-related deaths, they too, 
give up hope for survival and engage in unprotected, dangerous 
sex.  Benjamin Schatz, executive director of the gay Association 
of American Physicians for Human Rights, says that more gays will
have to challenge the new AIDS crisis in order to protect their 
lives.
      
"Setting Standards"
Maclean's (09/19/94) Vol. 107, No. 38, P. 26;  Nichols, Mark
     A report filed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 
July--which resulted in the ban of Canadian source plasma from 
entering the United States--highlighted the differences between 
the Canadian and American blood systems.  One  distinction is 
that, in the U.S. blood system, potential donors are verbally and
frankly questioned about potential high-risk activities, while 
the Canadian system has only a written questionnaire.  Another 
difference is that U.S. blood samples are tested for a variety of
infectious diseases and those that test HIV-positive receive a 
confirmation test and are quarantined in the meantime.  In 
Canada, samples are also tested for infectious diseases, but the 
blood is not quarantined until after the second test results 
return--a process that can take up to two weeks.  Additional 
differences that led to the FDA ban include Canada's procedures 
for tracing HIV-infected donors, for hepatitis B screening, and 
in computer record keeping which, in Canada, does not detect 
cases where records exist for the same donor.
      
"Medical Briefs: Mucosal Candidiasis Therapy"
Advocate (09/20/94) No. 664, P. 25;  Cohan, Gary R.
     Research has shown a significant failure rate for fluconazole 
therapy in treating mucosal candidiasis, which is often found in 
people who are HIV-positive.  Approximately 6 percent of 155 
participants had persistent candida, and eight of those nine had 
a CD4-cell counts of less than 50.  Only patients with extreme 
symptoms found effective treatment with intravenous amphotericin 
B.
      
"Nothing Happened"
Advocate (09/20/94) No. 664, P. 22;  Gallagher, John
     The 10th International Conference on AIDS was a subdued meeting, 
compared to previous high-profile ones, because of reduced 
attendance and expectations.  Many people felt that Japan, while 
chosen to highlight the spread of HIV in Asia, was too far away 
and too expensive for many participants to attend.  Most of the 
research presented at the conference, including the efficacy of 
protease inhibitors, has moderate AIDS treatment potential and 
was not new information because the knowledge is distributed 
through many other networks.
      
"A Community in Denial"
Focus (09/94) Vol. 8, No. 9, P. 5;  Chun, Rocky
     Denial is the reason that the Asian/Pacific Islander community 
appears immune to the AIDS epidemic, says Rocky Chun, who helped 
found the Gay Asian/Pacific Islander Alliance Community HIV 
Project and the Asian/Pacific Islander AIDS Coalition in San 
Francisco.  HIV is not discussed in the community because it is 
associated with drugs and sex--two great evils--says Chun.  In 
Chinese communities, taboo subjects such as sex and death also 
hide HIV because they are too painful and too obscene to discuss.
Preservation of "family face" is all-important and Asian family 
ties are strong enough to prevent HIV-infected members and even 
friends from asking for help, Chun says.  Denial of HIV is 
supported by Asian medical practitioners who--concerned with the 
family honor--might diagnose HIV as a "terminal condition," which
sustains the denial.  Some API people use alternative healers, 
who are not licensed as medical doctors and are not required to 
report any instances of HIV; therefore, many AIDS cases among API
communities are unknown and unreported.  Chun suggests continuing
education and discussion in API communities to help overcome 
their denial because they will not be able to ignore the AIDS 
epidemic if they are surrounded with information.
      
