Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1998. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
 |
San Francisco Examiner - October 8, 1998
Ulysses Torassa, Examiner Medical Writer; Examiner news services contributed to this report.
New protease inhibitor drugs that have prolonged many lives are credited for the large drops, which began in 1995.
AIDS deaths nationwide fell 47 percent last year, to 5.9 deaths per 100,000 Americans, down from 15.6 per 100,000 in 1995. Since 1990, AIDS had been one of the top 10 leading causes of death, but it is now listed as 14th.
Among people aged 25 to 44, it went from being the leading cause of death in 1995 to the fifth-leading cause, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The center's findings, reported Wednesday, were based on a review of birth and death records.
"These figures mean that new treatments have been very effective in extending the lives of those who already have HIV infection," Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala said.
However, as a note of caution, she added that the figures "do not mean that we have significantly reduced HIV transmission."
The decline in AIDS deaths in San Francisco has been equally profound - in the first nine months of this year, 200 AIDS deaths were reported by The City's Department of Public Health, compared to 248 deaths in the same period last year.
During the peak year of 1992, 1,819 people died of AIDS here. Statewide, AIDS deaths dropped from 4,630 in 1996 to 2,058 in 1997, according to the California Department of Health Services.
"The combination therapy is having a very strong beneficial effect," said Rene Durazzo, program director for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. "This speaks to the need to continue to invest in good medical care and make sure people have access to these drugs."
In part because of the drug therapy, the number of people living with AIDS has continued to climb. More than 8,000 people in The City had AIDS as of Sept. 30, while 7,800 San Franciscans were living with it in 1997, the public health department said.
Nationwide, the rate of new HIV infections has remained steady, at about 40,000 per year. However, the rates in San Francisco have declined, to about 500 per year. Durazzo gave credit to the widespread use of needle exchange here, as well as aggressive local prevention efforts.
But Durazzo said there are also ominous signs that San Francisco's rate may not stay down, since more men are reporting having unprotected anal sex, and the rate of anal gonorrhea among gay men is also on the rise.
He also said the drug therapies may not be as effective as once hoped. "We are seeing data that these drugs are starting to show their limitations and for many people they work for a while and then the benefits begin to decline and they are no longer keeping the virus in check," Durazzo said.
981008
SE981002
Copyright © 1998 - San Francisco Examiner. All rights reserved. Reproduced with permission. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the San Francisco Examiner, Permissions Desk, 110 Fifth Street, P.O. Box 7260, San Franciso, CA 94120.
AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, Elton John AIDS Foundation, iMetrikus, Inc., John M. Lloyd Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 1998. 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, 1998. 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. .