Circumcision Prevents HIV Infection in U.S. Heterosexual Men Heterosexual African-American men who have been circumcised are less likely than non-circumcised men to become infected after being exposed to HIV, according to a U.S. study published in the January 1 issue of the Journal of Infectious Diseases and reported by ScienceDaily.
December 30, 2008
Generic Zerit Approved in United States Three generic formulations of stavudine—originally marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) using the brand name Zerit—have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in both developing nations and the United States, according to an FDA announcement.
December 29, 2008
Does Smoking Reduce Kaposi’s Sarcoma Risk? HIV-positive cigarette smokers may face a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and various cancers, but they may also have a lower risk of Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS), according to a letter published by National Cancer Institute (NCI) researchers in the January 14 issue of AIDS.
December 24, 2008
A Test to Predict Responses to Hep C Treatment? Current treatments for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection have severe side effects and fail in about half of treated patients, including people living with HIV. However, according to a ScienceDaily report, researchers at Saint Louis University have developed an approach that may predict the outcome of therapy, raising the possibility of a test to predict whether treatment will be effective before it is started.
December 23, 2008
Ziagen, Prezista Tablets Now Available for Children The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved children-friendly tablet formulations of two commonly used antiretrovirals: Ziagen (abacavir) and Prezista (darunavir).
High Rates of Metabolic Syndrome, Cardio Risk in Older People With HIV A high percentage of people with HIV who are 50 or older have metabolic syndrome—which can include belly fat accumulation, high blood pressure and unhealthy changes in cholesterol and blood sugar—and elevated cardiovascular disease risk, according to the authors of a study published in the December issue of AIDS Patient Care and STDs.
December 18, 2008
Thyroid Problems More Common in HIV Population People with HIV may have a higher than expected rate of thyroid problems, according to the authors of a study published in the January 1 issue of the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes.
December 17, 2008
Tesamorelin Diminished Gut Fat in Phase 3 Study The Canadian company Theratechnologies announced Monday that its experimental drug tesamorelin reduced belly fat accumulation by 18 percent over 52 weeks in the second of two Phase 3 clinical trials. And in a second announcement on Tuesday, the company confirmed a proposed deal with EMD Serono to sell the drug in the United States once it is approved.
December 16, 2008
Treatment Adherence: Better Is Best Near perfect adherence remains a leading predictor of treatment success, according to a Canadian study published in the November 12 issue of AIDS and reported by aidsmap. According to the newest data, people who miss more than 5 percent of their antiretroviral (ARV) doses—no more than one dose a month if using once-daily medications—were much more likely to experience treatment failure.
December 15, 2008
Obesity Common in HIV-Positive Patients Wasting syndrome was once a common and difficult-to-treat complication of HIV infection. But today, severe weight loss occurs much less frequently among people living with HIV and receiving antiretroviral (ARV) therapy. In fact, a recent study conducted at two naval clinics and published in the December 1 issue of AIDS Patient Care and STDs suggests that many HIV-positive people are obese or overweight—a risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
December 11, 2008
Blocking CD8 Cell Receptor Prolongs Survival in Monkeys Blocking a protein called PD1 on immune system cells helped reduced viral loads and increased survival in monkeys infected with a virus similar to HIV, according to the authors of a study published online December 10 in Nature and reported by ScienceDaily.
December 10, 2008
HPV Vaccine for Guys: Positive Early Data An early look at a study of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine Gardasil in men and boys found fewer infections with cancer-causing strains of HPV among those receiving the vaccine compared with placebo, according to an announcement by Merck and a report by UCSF Today.
December 09, 2008
Antibody Test Not the Best for Diagnosing Acute Hep C People with HIV may take longer to develop hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibodies after becoming infected with the liver-damaging virus than HIV-negative patients, according to a study published in the January 2 issue of AIDS. The delay in antibody development lowers the number of HIV-positive patients who could be diagnosed during acute HCV infection, when treatment success rates are higher.
Zoledronate Effectively Treats HIV-Related Bone Mineral Loss A one-time dose of zoledronate (Reclast) increased bone health for up to one year in HIV-positive patients with bone mineral deficiency, according to a study published in the January 2 issue of AIDS.
December 04, 2008
Prostate Cancer Treatment Works Well in HIV-Positive Men Radiation treatment for prostate cancer appears to work well in HIV-positive men, according to study results published in the November issue of Urology. The latest findings echo those of another study published earlier this year.
December 03, 2008
Abacavir May Not Significantly Increase Inflammatory Proteins
Taking abacavir (found in Ziagen, Epzicom and Trizivir) may not lead to protein increases that have been linked to heart attacks, say the authors of a small study published in the November 30 issue of AIDS and reported by aidsmap. This finding contrasts two studies published earlier this year that found an increased risk of heart attacks in people taking abacavir, possibly due to a spike in blood levels of proteins associated with immune system inflammation.
December 02, 2008
Proteins That Contain Selenium Reduce HIV Reproduction Increasing the production of proteins in the body containing the mineral selenium may play a role in combating HIV, according to test tube studies conducted at Pennsylvania State University in University Park and reported by Science Daily.
December 01, 2008
Latinos Most Likely, Blacks Least Likely to Have Lipodystrophy
HIV-positive Latino patients were the most likely and HIV-positive black patients were the least likely to have lipodystrophy—undesirable changes in body fat, cholesterol and blood sugar—after starting antiretroviral (ARV) therapy, according to a study published online November 22 in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes.
December 31, 2008
