Washington Blade - August 25, 2006

TORONTO - While their numbers may be slimmer than in years past, protesters at the 16th International AIDS Conference made their presence known, including a rally by sex workers and a women's march demanding more funding for HIV prevention. Chants from protesters included: "Condom, needles, and the rest - we need more than just a test!" and "Act Up! Fight Back! Fight AIDS!" A discussion with former President Bill Clinton and Bill Gates was disrupted when protesters held up pillowcases spray painted with the words: "Fight AIDS. Fund Healthworkers Now," according to an Aug. 18 CNN report. "In none of the demonstrations are we actually expecting a major change," Walt Senterfitt, board chair of Community HIV/AIDS Mobilization Project, told CNN. "It's mostly a reminder, a tap on the shoulder that activists are still here." This year's smaller protests contrasted with past protests. In 2002 at the Barcelona, Spain, conference, U.S. Health & Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson's speech was inaudible over the deafening chants of protesters. In Bangkok in 2004, Ambassador Randall Tobias, President George W. Bush's appointed U.S. delegate to the conference, was unable to speak after he was booed off the stage.

HIV rapid tests result in more learning status

TORONTO - Rapid HIV tests could be an effective tool in informing people of their HIV status, according to a study by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs presented at the 16th International AIDS conference. Patients who received rapid testing, as opposed to traditional testing, were much more likely to learn their results, Reuters reported. In the comparison study, 90 percent of the rapid test recipients received their results versus 52 percent who returned for results with traditional testing. Dr. Henry Anaya, who presented the study, said that testing is important because people tend to reduce their risk behaviors when they know their HIV status, Reuters reported. Traditional HIV testing requires individuals to come to two appointments - the first for testing, and the second for receiving the results and counseling. Rapid tests only require one appointment. An oral swab or finger stick is used, and results can be available in as little as 20 minutes.

Younger people more likely to use PEP, research states

TORONTO - A study of post-exposure prophaylaxis (PEP) treatment presented at the 16th International AIDS Conference revealed younger people are more likely to use PEP after risky sexual behavior, according to an Aug. 19 article on Aidsmap.com. A study from Canada split subjects between a group of men aged below 25 and an adult group aged 25 and over. The study gave the gay men three-day "starter packs" of Truvada to take in case of a risk episode. Among the youth group, 47 percent of incidents of receptive unprotected anal sex were accompanied by PEP use compared with only 29 percent of incidents in the adult group. Only a third of participants said the availability of PEP changed their sexual behavior. There was a high rate of seroconversion in the study; five men (three youth and two adults) became infected during the nine months, yielding an annual incidence of 11 percent, according to the report.

Male circumcision studied in halting HIV spread

TORONTO - The U.S. National Institutes of Health is continuing two trials into the effectiveness of male circumcision as a way to limit the spread of HIV, it was announced at the International AIDS Conference. The NIH is funding a study in Uganda and another in Kenya, according to an Aug. 17 article posted on Aidsmap.com. The NIH hopes to repeat the results of a 2005 French study, named the Orange Farm Intervention Trial, conducted in South Africa that found that circumcised men were 60 percent less likely to contract the AIDS virus than men who still had their foreskins. Scientists are only speculating what role circumcision plays in the transmission of AIDS. It is thought that viral particles get trapped in the foreskin and are released later during sexual intercourse. Another possibility is that the extra skin causes abrasions that enable infection, the report states. Results are expected in 2007.

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