On December 18, 1992, CDC published a revised classification system for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and an expanded surveillance case definition for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) among adolescents and adults in the United States.
Since the 1970s, sexual activity has increased among adolescents in the United States; at the same time, rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), unintended pregnancy, and -- beginning in the 1980s -- human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection also have increased among adolescents. This report presents 1991 self-reported data from students in grades 9-12 about behaviors that can result in HIV infection, other STDs, or unintended pregnancy.
MMWR Weekly, December 04, 1992 / 41(48);899,905-906
Puerto Rico has the second highest overall rate of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) cases among states and territories of the United States and the second highest rate of cases among women. Although heterosexual transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) among persons reported with AIDS has increased throughout the United States -- accounting for 8% of all U.S. AIDS cases diagnosed in 1991 -- the proportion of cases attributed to heterosexual transmission is highest in Puerto Rico (18%).
MMWR Recommendations and Reports, December 18, 1992 / 41(RR-18)
This report presents projections of the number of persons who will initially be diagnosed with a condition included in the 1987 surveillance definition for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in the United States during the period 1992-1994.
MMWR Recommendations and Reports, December 18, 1992 / 41(RR-17)
CDC has revised the classification system for HIV infection to emphasize the clinical importance of the CD4+ T-lymphocyte count in the categorization of HIV-related clinical conditions. This classification system replaces the system published by CDC in 1986 (1) and is primarily intended for use in public health practice.
"AIDS: A Community Commitment" is the theme selected by the World Health Organization (WHO) for the fifth annual World AIDS Day, December 1, 1992. This year's theme focuses attention on the men, women, and children throughout the world who are infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the cause of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).
Efforts to prevent human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in the United States must be targeted toward persons of all age groups at risk, including adolescents. Many high school students have reported engaging in behaviors that increase their risk for HIV infection.
MMWR Weekly, November 20, 1992 / 41(46);868-869,875-876
States and cities have effectively used community-level intervention projects to reduce cigarette smoking and other risk behaviors associated with chronic disease; similar strategies have been introduced to prevent human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in men who have sex with men and who identify themselves as homosexual or bisexual.
Public health surveillance efforts for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in the United States have documented an increasing proportion of cases among persons who reside outside the largest metropolitan areas. These findings, coupled with results of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevalence studies, have led to the development of HIV-related prevention and treatment services in smaller cities and rural areas.
On December 1, 1992, CDC will initiate a new, long-term, primary prevention program for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) education. This program, "Business Responds to AIDS" (BRTA), will encourage business executives, managers, and labor leaders to undertake comprehensive workplace HIV education that includes developing written HIV policies; providing employee education; supporting education efforts for employees' families; developing manager, labor-leader, and supervisor training about companies' HIV policies and education programs; and providing corporate support and encouraging employees to provide volunteer support for community HIV-prevention activities.
CDC recently reported on two laboratory workers who had seroconverted against simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) following work-related exposure to the virus. In follow-up, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and CDC have collaborated on an anonymous SIV seroprevalence study using stored serum samples from some laboratory workers and animal caretakers involved in SIV research at some of the NIH-sponsored facilities in the United States.
Public health surveillance for and risk-assessment studies of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection provide a basis for formulating measures to minimize the risk for occupational transmission of HIV to health-care workers. Data on occupational transmission of HIV have been provided by two CDC-supported national surveillance systems: one initiated in 1981 for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) cases and one initiated in 1991 for HIV infections acquired through occupational exposures.
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)-prevention efforts supported by the federal government include programs offered through community-based organizations (CBOs) and state and local health departments. To assess the extent of community awareness and use of these HIV/AIDS-prevention services among Hispanics and non-Hispanic blacks in three cities in Connecticut, the Connecticut State Department of Health Services (CSDHS) included questions on HIV/AIDS-prevention programs in its population-based chronic disease and health risk survey.
In November 1991, CDC proposed an expansion of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) surveillance case definition and solicited public comment. Following a review of these comments and additional scientific data, CDC has revised the proposed expansion.
MMWR Weekly, October 09, 1992 / 41(40);743,749-752
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) counseling and testing (CT) services are key elements of the national HIV-prevention strategy. Although the number and characteristics of persons receiving CT through publicly funded programs are monitored by CDC's CT data system, this system does not provide information about persons tested for HIV antibody by physicians in the private sector, hospitals, and other nonpublicly funded sources.
An estimated 2.7-4.0 million persons in the United States are classified as migrant and seasonal farm workers. Despite a high prevalence of tuberculosis (TB) and other conditions among migrant workers, approximately 13% have access to or receive care at federally funded migrant health clinics. During February-March 1992, to assess the prevalence of selected health conditions among migrant farm workers, the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (FDHRS) conducted a voluntary screening for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 infection, syphilis, and TB among workers living in 14 migrant camps in Immokalee, Florida.
MMWR Weekly, September 25, 1992 / 41(38);708-709,715
From 1987 through 1989, overall mortality among Baltimore residents aged 25-44 years increased from 380.7 deaths per 100,000 residents to 452.6 deaths per 100,000, reflecting the substantial impact of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). To better characterize this increase in mortality, the Baltimore City Health Department analyzed information on death certificates from the Baltimore City Bureau of Vital Statistics for persons aged 25-44 years for 1987- 1989.
During 1990 and 1991, nosocomial transmission of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) was documented in four hospitals in New York and Florida (1,2). Subsequently, additional MDR-TB outbreaks have been investigated by CDC. This report summarizes preliminary results of an investigation of transmission of MDR-TB in a correctional facility in New York.
MMWR Recommendations and Reports, July 17, 1992 / 41(RR12);1-9
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recommended that all donated blood be screened for antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus type 2 (HIV-2) beginning no later than June 1, 1992. This article provides CDC recommendations for the diagnosis of HIV-1 and HIV-2 infections in persons being tested in settings other than blood centers and CDC/FDA guidelines for serologic testing with combination HIV-1/HIV-2 screening enzyme immunoassays (EIAs).
In the United States, public health officials use acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) surveillance data to monitor trends, manage resources within communities, and identify specific needs of special populations (1). In addition to AIDS surveillance, 24 states require confidential reporting by name of HIV-infected persons to the local/state health department (Figure 1).
In January 1992, a state health department notified CDC about a 4-year-old boy with hemophilia who had become infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The virus was genetically similar to that of his 8-year-old brother, who had been previously infected with HIV through receipt of unscreened blood products for his hemophilia.
As of December 31, 1991, the number of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) cases in Italy exceeded 11,500; two thirds occurred among injecting-drug users (IDUs), and 7% occurred through heterosexual contact with persons who were human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-antibody-positive. In Italy, because the average age at diagnosis among IDUs and heterosexual persons with AIDS has been 28 and 32 years, respectively, many may have contracted HIV infection as adolescents or young adults.
Although male homosexual activity has been reported as a risk factor for hepatitis A, the frequency with which homosexual activity was reported by persons with hepatitis A was less than 10% during 1982-1989 (CDC unpublished data, 1990). However, in June of 1991, CDC received reports from several cities in the United States, Canada, and Australia of an increase in hepatitis A among homosexual men during the first 6 months of 1991.
From June 1981 through December 1991, 34% of all reported cases of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) among women in the United States were attributed to heterosexual transmission, and that proportion has been increasing steadily. Factors associated with an increased risk for heterosexual transmission include unprotected sexual intercourse, multiple sex partners, and the presence of other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).
Strategies to identify and influence persons at increased risk for infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) require outreach to provide prevention messages directly to persons at risk, assist them to obtain prevention services, and encourage them to reduce risks. Street outreach programs complement CDC's information and education campaign "America Responds to AIDS" by providing persons with specific risk-reduction messages and materials.
The first cases of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) were reported in June 1981. From 1981 through December 1987, 50,000 AIDS cases had been reported to CDC, and by August 1989, 100,000 cases had been reported. From September 1989 through November 1991, state and territorial health departments reported 100,000 additional cases. By December 31, 1991, a cumulative total of 206,392 cases had been reported, and the cumulative number of reported deaths associated with AIDS was 133,232.
CDC's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) has released two special reports examining the awareness of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) among blacks and Hispanics in the United States. The reports, based on data collected in 1990, describe various aspects of AIDS-related knowledge and HIV-antibody testing experience. Differentials by age, sex, and education are compared with those from the non-Hispanic white population.
The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, in collaboration with CDC and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, will cosponsor the Fifth National Forum on AIDS, Hepatitis, and Other Bloodborne Diseases March 29-April 1, 1992, in Atlanta.
As previously announced (1), CDC is revising the classification system for human immunodeficiency virus infection and is expanding the surveillance case definition for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) among adolescents and adults. The public comment period for this draft document has been extended for 60 days.
This information is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.