Rapid Expansion of HIV Treatment Services in Sub-Saharan Africa Feasible
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A massive scale-up of HIV/AIDS treatment programs at urban primary care sites in Zambia has produced favorable patient outcomes, demonstrating that expansion of such programs in sub-Saharan Africa is feasible, with good results, according to a study in the August 16 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on HIV/AIDS.
Jeffrey S.A. Stringer, M.D., of the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, Lusaka, and the University of Alabama at Birmingham, presented the findings of the study today at a JAMA media briefing at the International AIDS Conference in Toronto.
Zambia’s 11.5 million residents are among the world’s poorest and most severely affected by acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), according to background information in the article. About 16 percent of the adult population is infected with human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV 1), including 22 percent in the capital city Lusaka.
Feeling blue, say ‘I do’
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Lonely? Feeling low? Try taking a walk—down the aisle. Getting married enhances mental health, especially if you’re depressed, according to a new U.S. study.
The benefits of marriage for the depressed are particularly dramatic, a finding that surprised the professor-student team behind the study.
“We actually found the opposite of what we expected,” said Adrianne Frech, a PhD sociology student at Ohio State University who conducted the study with Kristi Williams, an assistant professor of sociology.
AIDS virus hides out in “accomplice” cells
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The AIDS virus has an accomplice that helps it infect the immune system cells it attacks—other immune system cells, U.S. researchers reported on Saturday.
In fact, these other cells, known as B cells, may be key to infection, the University of Pittsburgh researchers told an international AIDS conference. “The research supports a new role for B cells in the development and spread of HIV between cells,” said Dr. Charles Rinaldo, who led the study.
The findings may help find a way to block infection, and help explain why the virus can hide out in “reservoirs” inside the body for decades.
Low condom use blamed in Southern Africa AIDS crisis
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Southern Africa’s AIDS pandemic, the world’s worst, is being fueled primarily by low condom use among people with multiple concurrent sexual partners and low levels of male circumcision, a new study said on Monday.
The report by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) said men’s sexual attitudes and behaviors, intergenerational sex and high levels of gender and sexual violence also were to blame for the rapid spread of the disease.
It urged regional leaders—often accused of moving too slowly against the AIDS crisis—to encourage condom use and the reduction of the number of multiple sexual partners, as well as prepare for the possible roll-out of programs to expand male circumcision as a bulwark against HIV infection.
New guidelines help sort out HIV drug maze
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Simpler drug combinations can control the AIDS virus well, researchers said on Sunday in several reports that will help in trying to mix and match nearly two dozen different HIV drugs in lifesaving cocktails.
The reports published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, and presented to the International AIDS Conference in Toronto, show that simplified drug regimens can be safe and effective, and safely relieve side effects in some patients.
The HIV drugs, called antiretroviral drugs, are usually combined into three-drug cocktails called highly active antiretroviral therapy or HAART. They once had to be carefully planned out, with patients forced to take several different pills at various times of day.
Some can’t quit antidepressants
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When Gina O’Brien decided she no longer needed drugs to quell her anxiety and panic attacks, she followed doctor’s orders by slowly tapering her dose of the antidepressant Paxil.
The gradual withdrawal was supposed to prevent unpleasant symptoms that can result from stopping antidepressants cold turkey. But it didn’t work.
“I felt so sick that I couldn’t get off my couch,” O’Brien said. “I couldn’t stop crying.”
Dodgy Chinese antibiotic kills at least 7
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According to the Ministry of Health in China at least 7 deaths have now been linked to the injectable antibiotic clindamycin phosphate glucose.
The ministry has apparently demanded that all provincial health departments report cases of adverse reactions to the antibiotic an a daily basis.
The government banned the use of the drug last week, following the death of a 6-year-old girl and scores of others suffering adverse reactions.
That extra can of soda each day equals 15 pounds extra in weight
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A scientific review says what they are drinking is what is making Americans obese.
According to the new report the average American is drinking far more soda and other sugary drinks than ever before and that is why people have gained weight.
The researchers say that an extra can of soda a day can add 15 pounds in weight in a single year, and they suggest that this increased consumption is a key factor in the obesity problem.
Recently patented technology promotes early warning of pandemics
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Rapid analysis and response in the very early stages of a pandemic or bioterrorism event can sharply limit its deadly impact.
Surprisingly, a key early warning sensor for biologically- related illnesses may be the human body itself and Americans self-medicating with over the counter (OTC) treatments for “cold and flu” symptoms. Bracken Foster & Associates, LLC (d/b/a BioSentinel Solutions) has recently been granted a United States Patent for their groundbreaking efforts in the area of retail data biosurveillance. The company may now play a major role in America’s pandemic influenza and bioterrorism preparedness efforts.
Current public health monitoring efforts focus largely on analyzing admissions activity at local Emergency Rooms and doctor offices. While these efforts are important they may not provide adequate early warning. Research confirms that consumers self-medicate with OTC products long before seeing a doctor. By the time enough data is accumulated through traditional means, the pandemic or bioterrorism event may have already taken hold. This delay means that critical time for detection and intervention is thereby lost, threatening thousands of lives.
Obese have higher heart risk, but better outcome
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Obese individuals are at increased risk for suffering a heart attack or other “acute coronary syndrome” (ACS), but because they are treated more aggressively than their lean counterparts, their outcomes are actually better, new research suggests.
However, being extremely obese or underweight increases the cardiac mortality risk.
Numerous reports have identified obesity as a risk factor for coronary artery disease, but its influence, if any, on the presentation, treatment, and outcome of ACS was unclear, Dr. Deborah B. Diercks, from the University of California Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, and colleagues note.
Poor diabetes control tied to cognitive difficulty
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Elderly diabetics with poor blood sugar control have a high prevalence of undiagnosed cognitive dysfunction, depression and functional disabilities, according to a study by researchers in Boston.
Dr. Medha Munshi, of the Joslin Diabetes Center, and colleagues examined the association between cognitive dysfunction and blood sugar control in 60 diabetics older than age 70. These individuals had diabetes for an average of about 14 years and elevated hemoglobin A1C levels—an indicator of poor blood sugar control.
The mean HbA1C level was 7.9 percent. The American Diabetes Association recommends a target A1C level of 7.0 or lower.
Exercise may have benefits in colon cancer
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Vigorous physical activity following a diagnosis of colorectal cancer substantially reduces the risk of death due to cancer or other causes, two studies indicate. Neither stage of disease nor surgery appears to significantly alter these outcomes.
In one study, Dr. Jeffrey A. Meyerhardt, from Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, and his team identified 573 women diagnosed with stage I, II, or III colorectal cancer. During a median follow-up of 9.6 years, 132 women died; 80 of these deaths were due to the cancer.
The investigators documented the level of physical activity the participants reported following their diagnosis, and translated that to “metabolic equivalent tasks” (MET-hours per week). For example, walking at a rate of 2.9 mph was assigned a score of 3 MET-hours, aerobic exercise was given a 6, and running faster than 10 min/mile was counted as 12 MET-hours.
Helping young children cope with parent’s death
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Watching a parent die of a terminal disease is traumatic for any child, but families can take steps to help them through it, according to researchers.
Age, they say, makes a substantial difference in how children understand and react to a parent’s illness, and a 4-, 7- and 9-year-old all need very different types of support.
Writing in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, Drs. Grace H. Christ and Adolph E. Christ describe what they learned in interviews with 87 families of children who’d lost a parent to cancer.
Optimistic seniors recover better after hip fracture
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Hip fracture patients who have a positive outlook on life may fare better after hospitalization than their more depressed counterparts, study findings show.
“This study found that elderly patients with hip fracture with high positive affect had better recovery on three performance-based measures than patients with low positive affect and depressive symptoms,” write study author Dr. Lisa Fredman, of Boston University, and her colleagues.
Each year, approximately 340,000 seniors in the US experience hip fracture.
US tells 3 companies to stop making unapproved drugs
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U.S. authorities said on Thursday they told three companies to stop mass-producing and distributing unapproved medicines to treat asthma, bronchitis and other breathing disorders.
The Food and Drug Administration said the companies sold thousands of doses of inhaled drugs nationwide. The companies argued they were working under a practice known as “compounding” in which pharmacists customize formulations for specific patients, the FDA said.
The FDA allows compounding if a doctor prescribes something that meets a medical need and is unavailable in an approved product. A pharmacist, for example, could crush a tablet and mix it into a liquid for someone with trouble swallowing pills, or provide a version without a preservative that could cause an allergic reaction.
