Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1986. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The New York Times - September 30, 1986
Sexual relations between men and women appear to play an important role in the transmission of AIDS in Africa and Haiti, but most cases in the United States are attributed to homosexual activity or sharing of contaminated syringes by drug abusers.
Recent research, including two studies presented at a conference here Monday, demonstrates that acquired immune deficiency syndrome is spreading through heterosexual contact in the United States.
However, Dr. Harold Jaffe of the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta said, "At the present time in this country, it does not appear to be a major route of transmission."
Dr. Brian R. Saltzman of Montefiore Medical Center in New York studied sexual partners of AIDS-infected intravenous drug abusers. None of the partners were drug users. Although some researchers have speculated that the AIDS virus spreads more easily from men to women than from women to men, Dr. Saltzman's research did not show this.
Six of the 12 men studied eventually became infected with the AIDS virus, as did 32 of 76 women. Dr. Saltzman attributed all of the infections to heterosexual transmission of the virus.
"In this small sample," he said, "there were was no difference in the rate of infection from men to women compared to women to men."
In a separate report, Dr. Thomas A. Peterman of the C.D.C. studied husbands and wives of people who got AIDS infections from receiving tainted blood in transfusions.
Twenty husbands and 50 wives were sexually active with the infected spouse. One of the husbands and eight of the wives have become infected.
Dr. Peterman estimated that the risk of catching the AIDS virus through a single heterosexual encounter with an infected person was one-tenth of 1 percent for a woman and five-hundredths of 1 percent for a man.
The centers estimate that 4 percent of the nearly 26,000 AIDS cases reported in the United States were acquired through heterosexual contact.
The two latest studies were presented at the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, sponsored by the American Society for Microbiology.
These were other research findings presented at the conference:
* In a study of 20 high-priced New York prostitutes, Dr. Mindell Seidlin of New York University Medical Center found that only one was infected with the AIDS virus, and she was a needle drug abuser. Although the number sampled is small, it might mean that AIDS virus transmission is still uncommon among promiscuous heterosexuals.
* Dr. Warren D. Johnson of Cornell reported that pregnant women in Haiti who were infected with the AIDS virus had three times the usual risk of losing the fetuses through miscarriages.
* Dr. Jaffe, reporting on a long-running study of homosexual men in San Francisco, said the rate of new AIDS infections there was dropping but the number of AIDS cases continued to rise.
In addition, Dr. Kenneth Castro of the C.D.C. updated findings on an outbreak of AIDS in Belle Glade, Fla., where there have been 62 cases among 16,000 people. He said that intravenous drug abuse and heterosexual contact were largely to blame.
860930
AP861012
Copyright © 1986 - Associated Press. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the AP Permissions Desk.
AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted funding from Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Elton John AIDS Foundation, National Library of Medicine, Pacific Life Foundation, and donations from users like you.
Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 1986. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.
Copyright ©1980, 1986. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .