ACRIA Update - 2001Important note: Information in this article was accurate in September 2001. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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CRIA NEWS

ACRIA Update, Vol. 10, No. 4, Fall 2001

This issue of ACRIA Update goes to press the week of the terrorist attack. The enormity of the disaster and its potential implications are just beginning to sink in. Over the twenty years of the AIDS epidemic, many of us at CRIA have suffered seemingly unendurable losses. Yet, somehow we have found ways to endure those losses and, hopefully, grown in ways that allow us to offer something of value to our communities. As we struggle with further loss and our own fragile emotions, CRIA hopes for peace in the hearts of our readers, our communities and the world. We extend our deepest condolences to the friends and families of those who died in the violence of September 11, 2001.

CRIA Welcomes New Staff Member
CRIA is pleased to introduce Eugen Vartolomie, MD as our newest researcher. Dr. Vartolomie comes to us from Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center where he conducted HIV and AIDS related research within its Infectious Diseases Clinic. He received his MD in his native country of Romania, where he also specialized in HIV research, principally surrounding CMV Retinitis.

At CRIA, Dr. Vartolomie is managing our various protocols within partner clinics and hospitals in Brooklyn and Staten Island. This is the first time that CRIA has been able to dedicate a researcher to conducting trials within these two outer boroughs of New York City. Having this additional capacity represents an important advancement in CRIA's ability to ensure that all populations within our local community can potentially benefit from our HIV clinical trials.

Complementary Therapies Study Initiated In July 2001, CRIA launched a protocol in collaboration with Linda Richmond, Ph.D. at Village Center for Care to evaluate the acceptance, use, and benefits of complementary therapies for people who are living with HIV. Dr. Richmond will be interviewing care providers and patients at several day treatment centers in New York City to learn which complementary therapies are most popular and seemingly effective. We will be examining such modalities as herbal therapy, meditation, reflexology, Reiki, and yoga through this process.

This study is being conducted as a preliminary step before designing a series of independent trials on the most promising of the "alternative" medicines. Our ultimate goal is to offer PLWAs and care providers more safety and efficacy data on these modalities than is currently available. We expect to have the explanatory model of complementary therapies completed by the end of 2001.

CRIA Begins Studying New Protease Inhibitor Atazanavir
CRIA will soon begin a Phase III double-blinded trial of Bristol-Myers Squibb's new protease inhibitor, atazanavir (formerly known as BMS-232632). The study's purpose will be to gather safety and efficacy information on this antiretroviral agent, which has yet to receive FDA approval. We will be primarily comparing atazanavir to nelfinavir (Viracept), a widely used protease inhibitor already on the market. Our objective will be to see which if either of these two medications is safer and/or more effective in fighting HIV. Trial participants will be randomized to receive either atazanavir plus two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors or nelfinavir plus two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors and will be followed through 11 site visits to CRIA's clinic over at least a 48-week period. People whose current regimen is failing them and who have never taken more than 7 days of protease inhibitor therapy are eligible to participate in the study.

CRIA is looking for new
COMMUNITY ADVISORY BOARD members.

CRIA's Community Advisory Board (CAB) fosters partnership between the education staff and the local community impacted by HIV/AIDS. Involving community members in the development of our education programs ensures that community values and cultural differences are respected in CRIA's educational work.

Community Advisory Board members meet every other month, review program materials and help us identify education needs.

For more information about the CAB or if you are interested in volunteering at CRIA, please call Jen Curry at (212) 924-3934, ext. 120.



ACRIA Update

Editor in Chief
J Daniel Stricker

Editor
James Learned

Medical Editor
Jerome A. Ernst, MD

Publications Manager
Mark Milano

CRIA Board of Directors
Ross Bleckner, President
Donald Kotler, MD, Vice President
Vincent Wm. Gaglisotro, Secretary
Charles Franchino, DC, Treasurer
Marisa Cardinale
Douglas Dieterich, MD
Tiffany Dubin
Reinaldo Herrera
Kevin Krier
Carlos J. Sandoval, Esq.

In Memoriam
Gary Bonasorte
Kiki Mason
David Siedner
George N. Stathakis

Medical Director
Jerome A. Ernst, MD

Executive Director
J Daniel Stricker

CRIA is an independent, non-profit, community-based AIDS research and treatment education organization dedicated to rapidly improving the length and quality of life for people living with HIV/AIDS. CRIA studies new treatments for HIV-related diseases through its clinical research and conducts a comprehensive treatment education program. Bulk copies of ACRIA Update are available free to agencies that provide services to people living with HIV/AIDS. For more information, call Judy Codrington at 212-924-3934 ext. 121.

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Copyright © 2001 - ACRIA Update. Reproduced with permission. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the Editor, CRIA Upate, 230 West 38th Street, 17th Floor, New York, NY 10018   http://www.criany.org.

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