HIV Stigma-Fighting Campaign Goes “Viral”
Information on Lexiva and Lipid Levels
Study Shows Nevirapine Protects Fetus, but Can Trigger Resistance in Moms
Educational Video Targets Youth
HIV Stigma-Fighting Campaign Goes “Viral”
The AIDS Taskforce of Greater Cleveland (ATFGC) had a box of t-shirts sitting around that they wanted to do something meaningful with. The staff came up with some ideas and CEO Earl Pike posted the idea of an anti-stigma campaign on his Facebook page. Response was so positive that, in a few days time, the ATFGC started working to see the idea come to life.
In a unique and innovative effort, on Friday, March 26, hundreds of people around Cleveland, Ohio will wear the t-shirt (designed by the Treatment Action Campaign in South Africa, and bearing the words “HIV-positive”), all day, out in the world, to make a statement about stigma, silence, and "standing with" people impacted by HIV/AIDS. People from all walks of life, HIV-positive or not, are joining the effort and kicking in $5 to cover the cost of the t-shirt. This is a way for all to understand and dissect the stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS and to make a difference in the way the disease and the people who have it are viewed.
Those who live outside the area but wish to join in this pro-active event may do so by donating $10 to cover the cost of the t-shirt as well as the shipping cost. Send your donations to the AIDS Taskforce of Greater Cleveland, 3210 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH, 44115.
According to Rebecca Strong of the ATFGC, 231 people have committed to wearing the t-shirt and 346 have said they might. In addition to folks in Ohio, shirts have also been sent to South Carolina, New York City and, soon, to Chicago. Because time was so short, there hasn’t been a chance for the word to spread, but Strong agreed that perhaps this should become an annual, national event.
For those in the Cleveland area, on Thursday, March 25th, from 4:30-6:00 EST, participants can pick up their t-shirts at the ATFGC and have a chance to meet and talk about how it'll work.
On Friday, March 26th, participants everywhere will wear the t-shirt. To work. To school. When shopping, eating out, wherever their day takes them. They will all pay attention to their experience—how it feels, how others react, and "upload" those thoughts, feelings, and reactions throughout the course of the day, through FaceBook, MySpace, Twitter, and various blogs. Organizers will also be documenting some of these experiences through photography and video.
At the end of the day, Cleveland participants will meet again at the ATFGC from 4:00-5:00 EST, to share their experiences. Organizers hope that groups outside the Cleveland area will also plan such meetings
For more information, contact Rebecca Strong at the AIDS Taskforce at rstrong@atfgc.org.
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Information on Lexiva and Lipid Levels
Cholesterol and triglyceride levels should be checked before going on Lexiva (fos-amprenavir), and then monitored thereafter, according to updated information to the medication’s drug label.
In February, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) issued a “Dear Health Care Professional” letter on this label change to its HIV protease inhibitor drug. The new information shouldn’t surprise anyone. As the letter points out, increases in lipid levels (cholesterol and triglycerides) are a known risk factor of this class of drugs. Monitoring lipid levels is important when using a protease inhibitor.
GSK pointed to a report from the French Hospital Database on HIV which showed an association between exposure to Lexiva and an increased risk of heart attack. (The same was true for the protease inhibitor Kaletra and for the nucleoside drug Ziagen.)
The letter explains that heart attacks are a recognized risk for the protease inhibitor drug class, possibly related to the risk of increased lipid levels. Providers are advised to help patients with modifiable cardiovascular risk factors such as diabetes, smoking, and high blood pressure to make lifestyle and medication changes that would decrease those risk factors . In addition, elevated lipid levels should be treated appropriately for the individual patient. Moreover, “prescribers are reminded that HIV infection itself has been associated with lipid disorders and ischemic heart disease.”
See the 2009 French report at www.retroconference.org. The abstract, #43LB, is entitled “Impact of Specific NRTI and PI Exposure on the Risk of Myocardial Infarction: A Case-Control Study Nested within FHDH ANRS C04.”—Enid Vázquez
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Study Shows Nevirapine Protects Fetus, but Can Trigger Resistance in Moms
"Women given the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention drug nevirapine (Viramune) to protect their fetus should not use an HIV-drug regimen that contains nevirapine for at least one year after childbirth,” say researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).
Findings from a UAB study are published in PLoS Medicine, a journal of the nonprofit Public Library of Science.
The UAB study found that while nevirapine works well to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission, a single dose of nevirapine in infected pregnant women can trigger resistance to some forms of combination antiretroviral treatment (ART).
“This nevirapine-induced resistance fades after about 12 months and no longer hinders ART,” says UAB Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology Jeffrey S.A. Stringer, MD, the study's lead author.
The UAB study included 878 infected women in Zambia, Cote d'Ivoire, and Thailand. Some were given single-dose nevirapine and others were not; all participants were given ART immediately upon confirmed infection and monitored for one year.
"Nevirapine continues to be the backbone of anti-HIV therapy in the developing world, and its usefulness in preventing mother-to-child transmission is confirmed in the new study,” Stringer says.
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Educational Video Targets Youth
Beyondmedia Education, a nonprofit media arts organization in Chicago, has announced the successful completion of their project “HIV: Hey it’s Viral!”
The finished product is a DVD and educator’s toolkit that addresses HIV/AIDS prevention and activism from youth perspectives. According to Beyondmedia, “The video is youth-produced and uses a sex-positive and LGBTQ-inclusive educational approach as a practical alternative to abstinence-only education. The voices of HIV- positive urban youth encourage their peers to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS through safer-sex and healthy relationship choices.”
The “HIV: Hey It's Viral!” DVD also includes extra bonus features that explain the biology of HIV; how to use a condom: and how to get tested for HIV.
The project was recently approved for use in all Chicago Public High Schools and is currently being evaluated by Children’s Memorial Hospital.
You can view the trailer at http://vimeo.com/2557189
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