A cross-section of articles we've read this week about HIV/AIDS, STIs and a wide cross-section of structural and systemic factors impacting HIV/AIDS in Black communities.
MSM
Learning About Additional HIV Prevention Methods Doesn't Undermine Gay Men's Intentions to Use Condoms
Health promotion interventions can combine information about condoms and alternative biomedical prevention methods without undermining attitudes and intentions to use condoms, according to an experimental study published in the September issue of AIDS & Behavior.
San Francisco Official Says He Takes Truvada to Prevent H.I.V., and More Gay Men Should, Too
Scott Wiener, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, made an unusual public announcement on Wednesday: He takes Truvada, a daily antiviral pill, to greatly reduce his risk of contracting H.I.V.
Prevention
Educational Video Successfully Encourages HIV Testing in ER
A 16-minute educational video on HIV testing increased emergency room visitors' testing willingness by a third in a recent study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Publishing their findings in AIDS and Behavior, researchers showed the video to 160 people who initially declined an offer to receive an HIV antibody test while seeking care at a high-volume, urban emergency department.
Science
Cats Lend a Helping Paw in Search for Anti-HIV Drugs
A protein found in both the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) -- which causes AIDS in cats -- and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) might inspire new anti-HIV drugs, researchers report. They offer up a detailed, 3-D molecular map of FIV integrase that could help scientists also understand how this protein works in HIV.
The Genetics of Coping with HIV
We respond to infections in two fundamental ways. One is 'resistance,' where the body attacks the invading pathogen and reduces its numbers. Another, which is much less well understood, is 'tolerance,' where the body tries to minimize the damage done by the pathogen. A study using data from a large Swiss cohort of HIV-infected individuals gives us a glimpse into why some people cope with HIV better than others.
Treatment
IDSA, HIVMA Call for State Medicaid Programs to Lift Hepatitis C Prescribing Restrictions from ID and HIV Doctors
At a time when curative treatment is available for hepatitis C (HCV), some state Medicaid programs are instituting harmful barriers to the new HCV treatment, including limiting the availability of physicians to treat this growing epidemic by restricting infectious diseases and HIV physicians from prescribing life-saving medications. An estimated 4 million people in the U.S. are infected with HCV and at least 20,000 new infections occur every year.
Long Acting HIV Drugs to be Developed
HIV drugs which only need to be taken once a month are to be developed at the University of Liverpool in a bid to overcome the problem of 'pill fatigue'.
Maker of Costly Hepatitis C Drug Sovaldi Strikes Deal on Generics for Poor Countries
NEW DELHI - The maker of one of the costliest drugs in the world announced on Monday that it had struck deals with seven generic drug makers in India to sell lower-cost versions of the medicine - a $1,000-a-pill hepatitis C treatment - in poorer countries.
Miscellaneous
Arizona Republican Official Resigns After Remarks About Medicaid Recipients
The former Arizona lawmaker who sponsored the state's stringent anti-immigration law resigned as a top state Republican official late Sunday amid criticism for remarks he made supporting mandatory birth control or sterilization for Medicaid recipients.
Coalition Continues Push for Rescinded HIV/AIDS Allocations
A statewide coalition of HIV/AIDS organizations, most of whom primarily serve persons of color, is continuing with its efforts to receive allocations they had been awarded through the state's appropriation process.
The Fiery of STD's Among US States
Last year researchers conducted an online survey concerning relationships of nearly 10,000 people worldwide that included 23,000 from the United States for the book called The Normal Bar. Respondents were 18 years and older and relationships included heterosexual and same sex. The results showed that 40% of respondents said they had sex three or four times weekly.
Health Law Has Caveat on Renewal of Coverage
WASHINGTON - Millions of consumers will soon receive notices from health insurance companies stating that their coverage is being automatically renewed for 2015, along with the financial assistance they received this year from the federal government.
Punishment or Child Abuse?
WASHINGTON - THE indictment last week of the N.F.L. player Adrian Peterson by a Texas grand jury for reckless or negligent injury to a child has set into relief the harmful disciplinary practices of some black families. Mr. Peterson used a "switch," a slim, leafless tree branch, to beat his 4-year-old son, raising welts on the youngster's legs, buttocks and scrotum. This is child abuse dressed up as acceptable punishment.
U.S. to End Coverage Under Health Care Law for Tens of Thousands
WASHINGTON - The Obama administration said on Monday that it planned to terminate health insurance for 115,000 people on Oct. 1 because they had failed to prove that they were United States citizens or legal immigrants eligible for coverage under the Affordable Care Act. It also told 363,000 people that they could lose financial aid because their incomes could not be verified.
What to Do When a Patient Admits an H.I.V. Phobia
Dr. Abigail Zuger on the everyday ethical issues doctors face.
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