AEGiS-WashBlade: HEALTH: Medical Report

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2002. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

HEALTH: Medical Report

Washington Blade - March 29, 2002

Study: tongue piercings may pose health risk CHICAGO -- Extended wear of barbell tongue jewelry could increase the chance of gum recession and tooth chipping, according to a study published in the March Journal of Periodontology. Researchers from Loma Linda University School of Dentistry and Ohio State University College of Dentistry examined and surveyed 52 young adults with pierced tongues. They found gum recession in 35 percent of subjects with pierced tongues for four or more years, and in 50 percent wearing long-stemmed barbells for two or more years. "During tongue movement, long-stem barbells are more likely to reach and damage the gums than short barbells," said Dr. Dimitris Tatakis, professor of peridontology at the Ohio State University College of Dentistry and co-author of the study. "Over time, this damage may cause the gums to recede, which can lead to more serious dental/oral complications." Dr. Timothy Roberts from the University of Rochester School of Medicine in New York presented study results on 4,500 adolescents aged 12 to 21 and found that teens with body piercings are more likely to smoke cigarettes, use drugs and exhibit other types of unhealthy behavior.

CDC suspends TB study after five patients become drug-resistant

ATLANTA (AP) -- The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention has suspended a drug trial for patients who have both tuberculosis and advanced HIV after five patients developed resistance to the drug. The study gave 159 patients twice-weekly doses of rifabutin, a TB drug that is considered safe to use in combination with protease inhibitors, which fight AIDS. Rifabutin failed for five of the patients because they built up resistance to the drug, the CDC said. All five patients had taken frequent doses of similar drugs earlier in their TB treatment. The CDC had halted the drug trial March 6, but said rifabutin remains a highly effective treatment for patients with HIV and TB who have not built resistance. "We decided to be on the safe side to avoid the risk," said Dr. Kenneth Castro, chief of TB elimination at the CDC. The drug trial began about two years ago.

Study finds increase in HIV among border town Latinos

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- New field surveys of Hispanic men in Tijuana and San Diego show an increase in HIV-infection rates in gay and bisexual men who journey back and forth across the border with Mexico. The rates of infection are as mush as four times as high as those in other California cities, said George F. Lemp, director of the University of California's AIDS Research Program. Infection rates in San Diego are particularly high, with more than 35 percent of gay and bisexual Hispanic men infected with HIV. In Tijuana, almost 19 percent were infected. "While the AIDS epidemic exists so far only in pockets in Mexico, there's a danger that it will explode, so we need to look closely at the behaviors and the centers of infection in both border regions," Lemp told the San Francisco Chronicle.

Wash. appeals court OKs medical pot conviction

SEATTLE (AP) -- The state Court of Appeals issued its first interpretation of Washington's medical marijuana law, upholding a man's conviction for failing to follow it precisely. Arthur "Ocean Israel" Shepherd, pleaded guilty to felony possession of marijuana in March 2000. He reserved the right to argue on appeal that Initiative 692 should have protected him from prosecution because he was growing marijuana for his friend, John Wilson, who has a debilitating spine condition. The appeals court rejected that argument on two counts. First, Dr. Gregg Sharp, who gave Wilson permission to use marijuana, wrote that using it "may" help him, according to the court. The law requires doctors to find that marijuana "would likely" help patients, which is a different standard, two of three judges said. The second point was that Shepard did not prove he was producing only enough marijuana to supply Wilson for 60 days, the limit dictated by the law.

Report on HIV: Ala. made strides, but there's more to be done

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) -- The chief of the governor's commission on HIV said the state should increase funds for medication for poor Alabama residents infected with HIV and do more to educate young people about the virus. State Rep. Laura Hall (D-Huntsville), chair of the group, told about 250 health workers, educators and patients on March 13 that the commission lobbied legislators for a $4 million increase in funds for AIDS drugs for the poor. The House has approved a $2 million increase in the General Fund budget -- for a total of $4 million -- and the Senate has yet to vote on the issue. Hall said it will be difficult to get the $4 million increase. "But I think the thing is to get the constituents and the clients to continue to educate the House and the Senate" about the importance of funding for HIV programs. Hall added the commission is lobbying the Senate to at least agree to the $2 million increase. From staff and wire reports

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