Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1997. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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The San Francisco Examiner - Wednesday, Feb. 5, 1997
Lisa M. Krieger of the Examiner Staff
The raw numbers of AIDS cases in rural California are still relatively small, but are climbing, the Sacramento Bee reported. For example, six cases of AIDS were diagnosed in Placer County in 1992, and 19 in 1996.
Yet the hinterlands largely have been ignored in AIDS research, education and treatment efforts, with consequences that could be devastating, participants said.
More than 150 people representing agencies that serve AIDS patients in rural areas participated in the meeting at the University of the Pacific to identify common problems and to seek solutions.
The increase in HIV and AIDS incidence in rural areas is primarily the result of a "lack of basic knowledge" about how the virus is transmitted, according to the service providers. Many people still consider it a "big city disease" or a "gay disease," they said.
In some rural California communities, patients must travel 60 miles to see an AIDS specialist. Experimental therapies that offer great hope for successfully treating the disease are rarely available in small medical centers.
"Everything is concentrated in San Francisco and San Diego and Los Angeles," said Rebecca Knodt of Community Health Centers of San Joaquin County. "There is nothing left for rural areas."
News briefs
*The number of new cases of AIDS in the European Union is stabilizing, figures released Wednesday show, but Spain, Italy and Portugal are still recording increases.
The commission said intravenous drug use was responsible for the greatest number of new cases, accounting for just less than half. Unprotected gay sex accounted for 28 percent of new infections, while 19 percent were transmitted by heterosexual contact.
*Men who are infected with HIV appear to progress to the full-blown disease much more quickly if they are deficient in vitamin B12, scientists from Johns Hopkins University report. The link is strong enough to warrant more rigorous study in a larger trial, they said.
*Fifteen percent to 50 percent of the clients of the financially troubled AIDS Foundation San Diego lied in an effort to receive food and other services, foundation officials said.
The agency had an "open arms policy," under which staff members never turned down clients. It now will require documentation of eligibility, they said.
Fraud is not solely responsible for the agency's financial problems, staffers said. To survive, the agency must cut its 10-year-old legal clinic, case management services and a program for Latino women and children.
Retrovirus conference
Experts around the Bay Area will give reports on the Fourth National Conference on Retroviruses last month in Washington, D.C.
*Greenbrae: Dr. Craig Lindquist, medical director of the Marin Speciality Clinic, will speak Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Marin General Hospital Conference Center. Free. Call (415) 499-7377.
*San Francisco: Drs. Paul Volberding and Marcus Conant and others will speak Monday from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St., Ballroom, Third Floor. Free. Call (415) 643-1822.
*Berkeley: Dr. Carol Brosgart of the East Bay AIDS Center / Alta Bates and others will speak Monday from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Alta Bates Medical Center Auditorium, 2450 Ashby Ave., Berkeley. Free. Call (510) 596-6150.
Events
* "An Introduction to HIV Treatment Options," sponsored by Project Inform, will be this Wednesday from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Project Inform office, 1965 Market St., Suite 220, San Francisco. Call (415) 558-8669.
* "Antiviral Strategies: Case by Case Consultations," with Dr. Scott Eberle, will be in Santa Rosa on Friday from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Public Health Rotunda, 3313 Chanate Road, Santa Rosa. Call (707) 524-7400.
*A symposium on the logistical, economic and emotional choices involved in re-entry into the work force, sponsored by the Conant Foundation, will be Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m. at UCSF Health Science Building, Room N217, 513 Parnassus Ave., San Francisco. Registration limited. Call (415) 643-1822.
*A free community forum on "HIV-associated Wasting," featuring UCSF AIDS Program physicians, will be Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Carr Auditorium on the S.F. General Hospital Campus, at 22nd Street, San Francisco. Call (415) 476-4082, ext. 118.
*East Bay ACT UP is sponsoring a picket line to demand more space for the women's, prenatal and AIDS clinics at Fairmont County Hospital at noon Feb. 14, 15400 Foothill Blvd., Building C in San Leandro. Call (510) 568-1680.
*A free "how-to" practical skills training for partners, friends and family who are AIDS caregivers will be offered by Home Care Companions on Feb. 12, 13, 14, 18, and 20 from 7 to 10 p.m. at St. Lukes Hospital. Call (415) 824-3269 to register.
*Free tax assistance to people with HIV who earned under $20,000 in taxable income will be available Feb. 20 and 27 from 6-8 p.m. at the S.F. AIDS Foundation, 10 United Nations Plaza, 2nd floor. Bring relevant paperwork. Call (415) 487-8000.
The toll
Kenneth John Costello, 42, a San Francisco floral and interior designer, and graduate of UC-Berkeley ... Dave Christian, 47, a voice-over talent, doing commercials for Macy's, Golden Gate Fields and Squaw Valley Ski Resort, among others ... Michael A. Pugh, 35, who served in the Navy aboard the USS Kitty Hawk and sang tenor with the S.F. Gay Men's Chorus ... Gayle Kirkpatrick, 62, a Tupelo, Miss.-born fashion designer who was known for his youthful, modern approach to American sportswear, in New York City.
Date
reported / Cases / Deaths
S.F. 1/1 23,841 16,604
Calif. 1/1 97,690 63,063
U.S. 1/1 548,102 343,000
WHO(rprtd) 1/1 8,400,000 6,400,000
Figures are cumulative since June 1981.
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