Washington Blade - December 28, 2001

WASHINGTON -- A U.S. Food & Drug Administration panel recommended that the FDA abandon a proposed rule that would have required all semen donations to be frozen for at least six months before being used, Reuters reported. Advisers to the FDA suggested that the agency could consider allowing the use of fresh semen from donors directly known and chosen by the recipient, provided that the recipient signed an informed consent. The agency's Blood Products Advisory Committee made the recommendation. Under the original proposed rule, all semen donations would have been frozen until the donor -- whether known to the recipient or anonymous -- had been tested for HIV and other viruses before and six months following the donation. Semen banks would have been required to destroy donations from those anonymous donors testing positive for viral infection. The American Civil Liberties Union, the Gay & Lesbian Medical Association, the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, and reproduction experts criticized the proposed rule, saying it would be tantamount to banning gay men from having children because of the screening requirements and the fact that gay males with low semen counts would effectively be excluded from becoming donors.

The FDA will now have to consider the committee's discussion and formulate an opinion, according to Reuters.

Wisconsin lawmakers offer medical marijuana bill

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Libertarian gubernatorial candidate Ed Thompson endorsed a bill that would allow Wisconsin residents suffering from cancer, AIDS, glaucoma and other diseases to legally smoke marijuana to help manage their pain and increase their appetites. "It's high time that the Wisconsin Legislature gets off its high horse and recognizes how important this is," said Thompson, who is mayor of Tomah and brother of U.S. Health & Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson. "Nobody's ever died from the use of marijuana," he said. "It's not harmful but helpful." Reps. Frank Boyle (D-Superior) and Mark Pocan (D-Madison) introduced the bill, which would allow people to grow or buy marijuana if their doctor gave them a statement consenting to its use for medical purposes.

Gay men contract a form of meningitis in Ohio

CLEVELAND -- A gay man in Cleveland died of a virulent blood infection caused by a meningitis germ and another is hospitalized from the same infection, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported. Steven Sterlekar, 32, died at Lakewood Hospital from meningococcal disease, an infectious illness that invades the bloodstream, killing quickly. Another man, who was at the same gay chorus party as Sterlekar before Sterlekar died, was also hospitalized but was reported to be in stable condition as of Dec. 13, according to the Plain Dealer. Sterlekar came down with flu symptoms after the chorus party Dec. 8 and the next day he died, the same day that the second man with meningococcal disease went into the hospital.

Meningococcal disease is fatal in 10 to 20 percent of cases. It can cause disabilities such as deafness and paralysis.

Guidelines requested for initiating HAART

BALTIMORE -- A report in the Nov. 23 journal AIDS recommends that current guidelines for initiating highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in HIV-infected persons should place greater emphasis on CD4+ cell count than on virus load, Reuters reported. Dr. Richard D. Moore and colleagues from the Johns Hopkins University assessed the outcomes of 530 and 484 HIV-infected patients who did and did not receive HAART, respectively. HAART was associated with decreased disease progression in patients with CD4+ cell counts "200 cells per microliter prior to treatment," the authors note. For HAART-treated patients, the viral load prior to therapy had no bearing on disease progression within CD4+ cell count strata. "Further longitudinal follow-up will be needed to better ascertain whether HAART initiated at 200 CD4+ cells per microliter is effective in slowing HIV disease progression," Moore's team concluded.

Researchers to study HIV infection, alcohol

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Researchers studying how alcohol abuse affects HIV treatment have received an $8 million grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse & Alcoholism. The money will enable researchers in Pittsburgh to determine the role of alcohol abuse among aging veterans with HIV, and expand on an ongoing study. "We know that alcohol and unprotected sex are common bedfellows," said Dr. Amy Justice, principal investigator at the University of Pittsburgh Veterans Administration Medical Center. "Alcohol use and abuse may be an important risk factor for HIV infection." Justice and Dr. Joseph Conigliaro, also of the University of Pittsburgh, will lead the study on 2,000 HIV-uninfected veterans in New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Houston.

-- From staff and wire reports

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