New book in the library : The Geometry of care

Indyk, Debbie (Ed.).
The geometry of care : linking resources, research and community to reduce degrees of separation between HIV treatment and prevention.
Bionghamton, NY, The Haworth Press, 2006
Call number: D 800 IND 2006 (Click on call number to borrow this book!)
"An effective strategy to deal with the AIDS epidemic is to have a wide range of scientists, clinicians, front-line workers, and clients distribute theory, care, and resource knowledge geometrically through all levels. The Geometry of Care: Linking Resources, Research, and Community to Reduce Degrees of Separation Between HIV Treatment and Prevention shows how to link bottom-up and top-down approaches to advance care, services, resources, training, theory, and policy analysis. Leading authorities draw upon behavioral and organizational theory to discuss the development of the frameworks necessary to effectively disseminate knowledge to benefit those needing care and to protect the community from further risk."

List of new acquisitions

The library publishes a monthly list of new acquisitions: books, videos, and a selection of journal articles on various topics. Whenever a document is available online, links are provided to make it easier for you to access the resource.

Print copies are available in the library. If you want to receive the list by email, it's easy! Just call us at 604-893-2248 or send an email to library@aidsvancouver.org.

Website of the week

WAVE: Women and AIDS Virtual Education
http://www.pwn-wave.ca/

WAVE is a website "where women with HIV and their HIV care providers will find support, information and education. WAVE is provided by Positive Women's Network in Vancouver, Canada and offers women with HIV who are newly diagnosed a special section with common immediate concerns.
WAVE offers women living with HIV an opportunity to access support and education, and to develop a community without having to leave their homes or risk disclosure. It provides an immediate response to the issues women face around HIV in a manner that is women-centred, relevant and reliable."

New HIV Test May Predict Drug Resistance

January 07, 2007
DURHAM, N.C. -- Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have developed a highly sensitive test for identifying which drug-resistant strains of HIV are harbored in a patient's bloodstream.

The test may provide physicians with a tool to guide patient treatment by predicting if a patient is likely to become resistant to a particular HIV drug, said one of its developers, Feng Gao, M.D., associate professor of medicine. Drug resistance is one of the most common reasons why therapy for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, fails.

The test, which detects genetic changes, or mutations, in HIV, also may help scientists understand how the constantly evolving virus develops drug resistance, Gao said. He said such knowledge ultimately may result in the development of new treatments designed to evade resistance.

The findings will appear online on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2007, in the journal Nature Methods, as well as in the journal's February 2007 print edition. The work was supported by the National Institutes of Health and the Duke Center for AIDS Research.

To read the article, click here.

New issue of AIDS Patient Care and STDs, Vol. 20, no 11

In this issue:

New Issues in the Challenge of HIV Drug Resistance
pp. 737-740.

Three-Class Antiretroviral Resistance in a Patient with Acute HIV-1
pp. 741-744. Abstract

Successful Treatment with Atazanavir and Lopinavir/Ritonavir Combination Therapy in Protease Inhibitor-Susceptible and Protease Inhibitor-Resistant HIV-Infected Patients
pp. 745-759. Abstract

A Comprehensive Evaluation of Survey Questions for Adherence to Antiretroviral Medications and Exploratory Analyses for Identifying Optimal Sets of Survey Questions
pp. 760-772. Abstract

A Randomized Trial of the Impact of a Programmable Medication Reminder Device on Quality of Life in Patients with
pp. 773-781. Abstract

Association of Comorbidity with Physical Disability in Older HIV-Infected Adults
pp. 782-791. Abstract

The Intent and Practice of Condom Use Among HIV-Positive Men Who Have Sex with Men in Japan
pp. 792-802. Abstract

HIV-Related Knowledge, Attitudes, Perceived Benefits, and Risks of HIV Testing Among Pregnant Women in Rural Southern India
pp. 803-811. Abstract

Antiviral Briefs
pp. 812-813.

Drug Developments and STD News
pp. 814-816.

New article published in Harm Reduction Journal

HIV seroprevalence among participants at a medically supervised injection facility in Vancouver, Canada: Implications for prevention, care and treatment.

Abstract:
North Americas first government sanctioned medically supervised injection facility (SIF) was opened during September 2003 in Vancouver, Canada. This was in response to a large open public drug scene, high rates of HIV and hepatitis C transmission, fatal drug overdoses, and poor health outcomes among the citys injection drug users. Between December 2003 and April 2005, a representative sample of 1,035 SIF participants were enrolled in a prospective cohort that required completing an interviewer-administered questionnaire and providing a blood sample for HIV testing. HIV infection was detected in 170/1007 (17%) participants and was associated with Aboriginal ethnicity (adjusted Odds Ratio [aOR], 2.70, 95% Confidence Interval [95% CI], 1.84-3.97), a history of borrowing used needles/syringes (aOR, 2.0, 95% CI, 1.37-2.93), previous incarceration (aOR, 1.87, 95% CI, 1.11-3.14), and daily injection cocaine use (aOR, 1.42, 95% CI, 1.00-2.03). The SIF has attracted a large number of marginalized injection drug users and presents an excellent opportunity to enhance HIV prevention through education, the provision of sterile injecting equipment, and a supervised environment to self-inject. In addition, the SIF is an important point of contact for HIV positive individuals who may not be participating in HIV care and treatment.

Click here to read the article.

Launch of CONNECT: Canadian HIV/AIDS Information Gateway

CONNECT is a union catalogue. You can use this catalogue to search the library collections of the five largest HIV/AIDS libraries in Canada. That represents a combined collection of over 67 000 books, videos, DVDs, journal articles, and other resources on HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, and legal/ethical issues, among many other topics.

CONNECT is a Canadian partnership between community-based HIV/AIDS organizations:

• AIDS Committee of Toronto
• AIDS Vancouver
• Canadian AIDS Treatment Information Exchange
• Canadian HIV/AIDS Information Centre
• Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network

Production of the website was made possible by a financial contribution from the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Visit us at http://www.hivinfovih.ca/ !!!

AIDS Patient care and STDs, Vol. 20, no 10, October 2006

New issue received!
Table of content:

Body Image in Men with HIV
Abstract

Antiretroviral Medication Considerations for Individuals Coinfected with HIV and Hepatitis C Virus
Abstract

Client Satisfaction with Rapid HIV Testing: Comparison Between an Urban Sexually Transmitted Disease Clinic and a Community-Based Testing Center
Abstract

A Measurement Model of Medication Adherence to Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy and Its Relation to Viral Load in HIV-Positive Adults
Abstract

Are Psychological Consequences of Stigma Enduring or Transitory? A Longitudinal Study of HIV Stigma and Distress Among Asians and Pacific Islanders Living with HIV
Abstract

Prevalence and Correlates of HIV Serostatus Disclosure: A Prospective Study Among HIV-Infected Postparturient Women in Barbados
Abstract

Antiviral Briefs
Citation

Drug Development and STD News
Citation

Request a copy of article

HIV Infection Linked With Lung Disease

U.S. medical scientists suggest patients who are HIV positive may be at an increased risk for developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The researchers from Yale University School of Medicine investigated the prevalence of COPD among 1,014 HIV-positive and 713 HIV-negative men enrolled in the Veterans Aging Cohort 5 Site Study.
Results showed the prevalence of COPD was 10 percent in HIV-positive and 9 percent in HIV-negative patients -- as reported by clinicians, and 15 percent and 12 percent, in that order, as indicated by patient self-reporting.

(http://www.playfuls.com/news_002905_HIV_Infection_Linked_With_Lung_Disease.html)

Building A 'Molecular' Condom, Scientists Aim To Stop HIV

CINDY TUMIEL
c. 2006 San Antonio Express-News
Distributed by The New York Times Syndicate
The idea is to create a long-acting "molecular condom" that could empower women and save lives in the world's poorest countries where HIV is rampant, and where other methods of preventing disease are not readily available or used.
Presenting their research at a meeting here, scientists in Utah are developing a gel that coats the vagina, forming a chemical barrier.
To that barrier could be added microbicides that kill HIV and other infectious diseases. The gel is still in early stages of development and years away from being tested in people. But researchers are hopeful their product will eventually be accepted and available in Africa and other Third World countries, where women are considered the group most at risk for transmission of HIV.

Read the article

Website of the week

Each week, you will find on this blog a selection of websites which you may find of interest.
Let's start with one of the most important web resources on HIV/AIDS: The Body : http://www.thebody.com
With over 550 topic areas covered by experts from 100 organizations, The Body is a wealth of information for anybody looking for information on living with HIV.
Ask the experts, Bulletin boards and inspiring stories are just a few features of this constantly updated website.


Send us your suggestions for the Website of the week!

Monkey form of HIV may be endemic in wild gorillas

By Patricia Reaney
LONDON (Reuters) - A monkey virus similar to HIV is endemic in wild gorillas in Africa and was probably transmitted to them by chimpanzees, researchers said on Wednesday.
About 40 million people worldwide are living with HIV/AIDS.
The origins of two of the three strains of the virus in humans have been traced back to monkeys in Africa infected with simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) but the source of the third has been unknown, until now.
"It is the first time that someone has done a survey among wild gorillas to see whether they were infected with an SIV," said Martine Peeters, a virologist at the University of Montpellier in France.
Read the article "Monkey form of HIV may be endemic in wild gorillas"

1991: Magic Johnson tests positive for HIV

Nov. 7, 1991: "With an announcement that stunned the nation, Earvin 'Magic' Johnson, the brilliant guard who was the marquee name for the Lakers and the National Basketball Assn. for 12 years, retired … saying he had tested positive for the virus that causes AIDS," The Times reported."

Johnson, 32, was characteristically upbeat when he made the announcement at a packed news conference at the Forum in Inglewood. Flashing his trademark smile, he stressed that while he is infected with the human immunodeficiency virus, he has not developed AIDS. Johnson said he intends to remain active in basketball off the court and that he will become a spokesman for AIDS prevention. "I plan to go on living for a long time," he said.

In one of two front-page articles, The Times described public reaction to the news that "an icon had been shot down in mid-stride." "The news was treated like the death of a head of state or the outbreak of war," the article said.
Source : L.A. Times

New AIDS Therapy Nukes HIV With Radioactive Antibodies

Like guided missiles, radioactive anti-HIV antibodies seek out and destroy HIV-infected cells.
The new approach to AIDS therapy -- called radioimmunotherapy -- works in mice, report Ekaterina Dadachova, PhD, of New York's Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and colleagues.
"Radioimmunotherapy is supposed to be curative," Dadachova tells WebMD. "Current HIV treatments kill the virus, but it will come back because it hides in latently infected cells. Our goal is to go after those cells, so radioimmunotherapy has the potential to cure somebody completely."
Dadachova's colleague, Harris Goldstein, MD, tempers his enthusiasm a bit more. Goldstein is director of the Einstein/MMC Center for AIDS Research in New York.
"If we had a nickel for every time HIV was cured we'd all be very wealthy," Goldstein tells WebMD. "But it is exciting when a new conceptual approach comes along. What makes this treatment unique is that it is designed to target HIV infected cells and kill them. This really has the potential to markedly reduce the viral infection in patients."

More on Fox News

First HIV Gene Therapy Test Encouraging

By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID
The Associated PressMonday, November 6, 2006; 6:19 PM
WASHINGTON --

"The first test of a potential new gene therapy for HIV _ the virus that causes AIDS _ was encouraging enough for researchers to launch a more extensive trial.
"The goal of this phase I trial was safety and feasibility, and the results established that," said lead researcher Dr. Carl June. "But the results also hint at something much more."
In addition to showing that the treatment was possible and didn't endanger the patients, the amount of virus in the subjects remained steady or decreased during the study, which involved just five people with chronic HIV infection.
One patient had a sustained decrease in the amount of virus, and immune cells and strength of the immune system increased in four patients during the nine-month study..."

Article available on the Washington Post's website.

Culture, health & sexuality, Vol. 8, no 6

Received today at the library!

Table of contents with links to abstracts:
Homosexuality, seropositivity, and family obligations: Perspectives of HIV‐infected men who have sex with men in China
pp. 487 - 500

Remaking the masculine self and coping in the liminal world of the gay ‘scene’
pp. 501 - 514

Social scripts and stark realities: Kenyan adolescents' abortion discourse
pp. 515 - 528

Community preparedness for HIV vaccine trials in the Democratic Republic of Congo
pp. 529 - 544

Manufacturing heterosexuality: Hormone replacement therapy and menopause in urban Oaxaca pp. 545 - 558

‘Snag bags’: Adapting condoms to community values in Native American communities
pp. 559 - 570

Request a copy of any article!

Dark Crystal - A CBC documentary

"Sweeping across the towns and cities of western Canada and headed eastward at an alarming paceis the drug known as crystal meth.
It's more addictive than heroin or cocaine at a fraction of the cost and the high it gives can last for days. And, unlike heroin or cocaine, it can be cooked up in an kitchen or basement lab using a recipe posted on internet sites and with ingredients found on the shelves at the local pharmacy. "

The website includes facts on crystal meth, information on crystal meth across Canada, the story of two B.C. towns, how to beat the addiction and online resources.

Watch the entire documentary online:
http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/darkcrystal/index.html

HIV Treatment Bulletin, October 2006

HIV Treatment Bulletin (htb) is a not-for-profit community publication that aims to provide a review of the most important medical advances related to clinical management of HIV and its related conditions as well as access to treatments. Comments to articles are compiled from consultant, author and editorial responses. Subscriptions are free.

The October issue is available at:
http://www.i-base.org.uk/pdf/htbvol7/htb7-10oct06.pdf
There's also a print copy in the library.

New Study Compares HIV Drug Treatments

Regimens to treat HIV infection that are based on a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) are at least as effective as treatment with a protease inhibitor but require patients to take fewer pills each day, according to a new study funded in part by HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
The study, published in the October 28 online issue of the Lancet, found that disease progression was similar for both regimens, but NNRTI-based treatment appeared more effective at decreasing the amount of virus in the blood. The number of patients who stopped treatment because of adverse events was similar for both medications.
The new study is the first to review all published research that directly compares the two classes of antiretroviral drugs used in highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). NNRTI-based regimens were found to be up to 60 percent more likely to suppress the amount of virus in patients' blood than protease inhibitor-based regimens. The percentage of patients who died or experienced disease progression were similar between the two treatments, and the number of patients who stopped taking the medications because of side effects or adverse events was also similar.
Read the complete article at http://www.axcessnews.com/modules/wfsection/article.php?articleid=11722

AIDS Care, Vol. 18, no 8

In this issue:

Girls’ schooling in Tanzania: the key to HIV/AIDS prevention?
pp. 863 - 871

Psychopathology of first-episode psychosis in HIV-positive persons in comparison to first-episode schizophrenia: A neglected issue
pp. 872 - 878

Safe sex after post-exposure prophylaxis for HIV: Intentions, challenges and ambivalences in narratives of gay men
pp. 879 - 887

‘We are no longer called club members but caregivers’: Involving youth in HIV and AIDS caregiving in rural Zambia
pp. 888 - 894

Overview and implementation of an intervention to prevent adherence failure among HIV-infected adults initiating antiretroviral therapy: Lessons learned from Project HEART
pp. 895 - 903

Social relationships, stigma and adherence to antiretroviral therapy for HIV/AIDS
pp. 904 - 910

Characteristics of homeless HIV-positive outreach responders in urban US and their success in primary care treatment
pp. 911 - 917

Patterns of reasoning and decision making about condom use by urban college students
pp. 918 - 930

Effects of HIV-related stigma among an early sample of patients receiving antiretroviral therapy in Botswana
pp. 931 - 933

Association between risk of acquiring HIV and beliefs and perceptions about the lived experience of HIV/AIDS among HIV-negative or untested men who have sex with men
pp. 934 - 941

Differences between men who report frequent, occasional or no unprotected anal intercourse with casual partners among a cohort of HIV-seronegative gay men in Sydney, Australia
pp. 942 - 951

HIV-disclosure in the context of vertical transmission: HIV-positive mothers in Johannesburg, South Africa
pp. 952 - 960

Violence and HIV-related risk among young men who have sex with men
pp. 961 - 967

Inadequacies in antiretroviral therapy use among Aboriginal and other Canadian populations
pp. 968 - 976

Illness-related factors, stress and coping strategies in relation to psychological distress in HIV-infected persons in Hong Kong
pp. 977 - 982

Communication of HIV viral load to guide sexual risk decisions with serodiscordant partners among San Francisco men who have sex with men
pp. 983 - 989

Barebacking websites: electronic environments for reducing or inducing HIV risk
pp. 990 - 997

Body image in middle-aged HIV-infected and uninfected women
pp. 998 - 1003

Knowledge, attitudes and sources of information regarding HIV/AIDS in Iranian adolescents
pp. 1004 - 1010

Perceived stress in HIV-infected individuals: Physiological and psychological correlates
pp. 1011 - 1017

A community-based rapid assessment of HIV behavioural risk disparities within a large sample of gay men in southeastern USA: A comparison of African American, Latino and white men
pp. 1018 - 1024

Improving well-being through psycho-education among voluntary counseling and testing seekers in Nigeria: A controlled outcome study
pp. 1025 - 1031

The role of sympathy on avoidance intention toward persons living with HIV/AIDS in Jamaica
pp. 1032 - 1039

Physical activity in a cohort of HIV-positive and HIV-negative injection drug users
pp. 1040 - 1045

Circuit parties: Sexual behaviors and HIV disclosure practices among men who have sex with men at the White Party, Palm Springs, California, 2003
pp. 1046 - 1049

Growing up: Perspectives of children, families and service providers regarding the needs of older children with perinatally-acquired HIV
pp. 1050 - 1053

Request a copy of any article