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WORLD / Health
Study: HIV-infected babies can be saved
(AP)
Updated: 2007-07-25 08:39
SYDNEY, Australia - HIV-infected babies given antiretroviral drugs in the
first weeks of life were four times more likely to survive than those
left untreated, raising hopes that more young lives can be saved, new
research suggests.
Delegates to the Fourth International AIDS Society Conference at Sydney,
Australia, take photos outside the convention center, Tuesday, July 24,
2007. [AP]
Drugs given to infected infants in South Africa - even though they
appeared healthy - helped them live longer than babies who started
therapy after showing signs of disease, according to early results of a
study sponsored by the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious
Diseases.
World Health Organization guidelines now call for medicines to be
administered only after signs of disease or a weakening immune system are
observed. But the South African study was so promising that its findings
were being released to the WHO and other health officials so they could
consider modifying the recommendations.
"It's very good news for young patients and parents," co-author Dr. Avy
Violari of the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg told The
Associated Press on Tuesday. She was to present the findings Wednesday at
an International AIDS Society Conference in Sydney.
"We were not expecting such short-term benefits," she said.
The trial, involving 377 babies between 6 weeks and 12 weeks old, started
in July 2005 in Soweto and Cape Town. Of those given the drugs early
despite no sign of illness, 4 percent died over a 48-week period compared
to 16 percent in the group where treatment was delayed until the babies
showed signs of disease.
Last month, an independent safety and monitoring board in London
concluded the results were so overwhelming that the study should be
altered to allow all the infants to begin treatment and that the early
findings should be released to the scientific community.
"The results of this trial could have significant public health
implications worldwide," Dr. Anthony Fauci, a leading AIDS expert and
director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases,
said in a statement.
Every year, about a half million babies are born infected with HIV
worldwide. Their immune systems are not fully developed within the first
year, making them more susceptible to the disease.
No major negative side effects were documented in the trial, but the
babies will be followed for three more years to determine whether they
experience any, said co-author Dr. Mark Cotton.
He said it's important for HIV-positive newborns to be identified early
and for policy makers to support treatment.
"We've provided the information, but it has to be implemented into a
program that works," he said. "We're quite relieved, in a way, that we
have this finding and we have a clear directive of what to do."
Also at the AIDS conference on Tuesday:
? Robert Bailey, a professor of epidemiology at the University of
Illinois, said studies in Africa showed that uncircumcised men were 2 1/2
times more likely to contract HIV from infected female partners. Only 30
percent of men worldwide have had the procedure, mostly in countries
where it is common for religious or health reasons.
? The American Foundation for AIDS Research said HIV infection rates
among men who have sex with men were rising in Africa, Asia and Latin
America, citing figures from UNAIDS. Studies also show that less than 5
percent of that group have access to HIV-related health care, the
research group said.
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