The New York Times - December 10, 1982
Harold M. Schmeck Jr.

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The Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta reported yesterday that an infant who had received blood transfusions developed a serious immune-deficiency disease that has principally afflicted homosexuals.

The child had received multiple transfusions of blood and blood products, including a transfusion from a man who later proved to have acquired immune deficiency syndrome, called AIDS, The disorder has been linked primarily to homosexual men. The child died at the age of 20 months from infections related to the immune deficiency.

The epidemiology facility in Atlanta also reported four cases of AIDS, and a probable fifth, among hemophilia patients who require frequent transfusions of a blood clotting factor.

"This and continuing reports of AIDS among persons with hemophilia A raise serious questions about the possible transmission of of AIDS through blood and blood products," said the report.

7 Cases Since July

Altogether, the Atlanta centers have documented seven cases of the immune deficiency disease in hemophilia patients since July. Five of the seven patients died. Four of the cases and an additional case described as "highly suspect" were reported yesterday in a weekly bulletin.

"These additional cases provide important perspectives on AIDS in U.S. hemophiliacs," the report said. "Two of the patients described here are 10 years of age or less and children with hemophilia must now be considered at risk for the disease. The number of cases continues to increase and the illness may pose a significant risk for patients with hemophilia," the report said.

Patients who suffer from hemophilia require frequent transfusions of a blood clotting factor from normal blood to stem their tendency to bleed copiously after the slightest injury. The need for the transfusions is particularly great for patients who have a classic form of the disease, called hemophilia A.

The infant who died at 20 months was not a hemophiliac. He required transfusions because an incompatibility between his blood and that of his mother had caused life-threatening blood destruction before birth. In this case it was possible to trace the identity of the donors, one of whom was a man later diagnosed as suffering from AIDS.

Many Contribute to Factor

The blood clotting factor given to hemophiliacs is pooled from many donors. Therefore it has not been possible to prove any link between an acquired immune deficiency problems and specific donors.

The immune deficiency disorder, first detected in homosexual men less than two years ago, has more recently been found in heterosexual drug abusers who use hypodermic syringes and in some natives, mostly men, of Haiti.

The cause of the condition is unknown, but it is widely believdd to be infectious and probably caused by a still unidentified virus that might be transmitted sexually or through blood or blood products. Altogether, a total of 788 definite AIDS cases have been reported to the Atlanta centers .

The disorder came to public attention because some sufferers from the immune deficiency developed a form of cancer called Kaposi's sarcoma, which had been extremely rare.
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