AEGiS-WSJ: Hepatitis B Vaccine Doesn't Transmit AIDS, Studies Say

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1984. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Hepatitis B Vaccine Doesn't Transmit AIDS, Studies Say

Wall Street Journal - December 14, 1984
Michael Waldholz, Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

New studies indicate that the only vaccine available for preventing hepatitis B doesn't transmit the virus associated with AIDS, or acquired immune deficiency syndrome. A widespread fear that the vaccine might carry the AIDS virus has sharply limited the vaccine's use.

The information was presented by researchers during a conference in Washington, D. C., that brought together a number of top public health officials. They warned that the incidence of heptitis B is rising despite the availability for the past two years of a vaccine regarded as being effective in preventing the disease. The conference was underwritten by Merck & Co., which developed and markets the vaccine.

Officials of the national Centers for Disease Control said at the meeting that since 1978, when they began a program to fight hepatitis B, the incidence of the disease has risen to a current 68 cases per 100,000 people from 40 cases per 100,000 people. Merck says only about 20% of the nine million people considered at risk have taken the vaccine.

The suggestion that Merck's vaccine doesn't contain the AIDS virus is contained in several recent experiments. In one test, Merck treated blood containing the AIDS virus with the same chemicals it uses to produce the hepatitis B virus and found no evidence of the AIDS virus.

Merck produces its vaccine from the blood of hepatitis B carriers, a percentage of whom are homosexual men who might, many believe, also be carriers of AIDS. Although Merck has claimed its production method destroys the agent responsible for AIDS, it hasn't quelled concern among health professionals and others that the vaccine might be tainted. Few hospitals or local public health programs have encouraged the vaccine's use.
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