Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) is an infectious disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). It was first recognized in the United States in 1981. AIDS is the advanced form of infection with the HIV virus, which may not cause recognizable disease for a long period after the initial exposure (latency). No vaccine is currently available to prevent HIV infection.
Treating HIV-infected people with antiretrovirals significantly reduces transmission to partners — Findings result from NIH-funded international study – Men and women infected with HIV reduced the risk of transmitting the virus to their sexual partners by taking oral antiretroviral medicines when their immune systems were relatively healthy, according to findings from a large-scale clinical study.
Research suggests HIV-infected patients at higher risk for bone fractures — Study compared fracture rates among HIV patients with general US population – Low bone mineral density in HIV-infected patients is common and raises concerns about increased risks of fracture, revealed by researchers.
Huge decline in HIV rates in Zimbabwe driven by fear of infection, says study – The big drop in the numbers of people infected with HIV in Zimbabwe is because of mass social change, driven by fear of infection, according to an international study reported in the journal PLoS Medicine.
Spike reported in number of people with HIV having a stroke – While the overall hospitalization rate for stroke has declined in recent years, the numbers have jumped dramatically for patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), suggesting they may be up to three times more likely to suffer a stroke than people uninfected by the virus that causes AIDS.
Expansion of HIV screening cost-effective in reducing spread of AIDS, Stanford study shows – An expanded U.S. program of HIV screening and treatment could prevent as many as 212,000 new infections over the next 20 years and prove to be very cost-effective, according to a new study by Stanford University School of Medicine researchers.
Celebrex may help prevent some non-melanoma skin cancers – New research shows the NSAID Celebrex may help prevent some non-melanoma skin cancers from developing in patients who have pre-cancerous actinic keratoses lesions and are at high risk for having the disease.
New Parkinson’s gene is linked to immune system – A hunt throughout the human genome for variants associated with common, late-onset Parkinson’s disease has revealed a new genetic link that implicates the immune system and offers new targets for drug development.
HIV virus hides in the brain – Studies of the spinal fluid of patients given anti-HIV drugs have resulted in new findings suggesting that the brain can act as a hiding place for the HIV virus.
Researchers discover genetic link between immune system, Parkinson’s disease – A team of researchers has discovered new evidence that Parkinson’s disease may have an infectious or autoimmune origin. “Common genetic variation in the HLA region is associated with late-onset sporadic Parkinson’s disease” appears online in Nature Genetics.
Exciting new avenues of research and policy drive expansion of HIV treatment access, use of antiretrovirals to prevent infections and pursuit of a cure — Exciting new avenues of research and policy – The unwillingness of the global AIDS community to accept the status quo is fuelling a new era of scientific innovation to drive novel ways of treating and preventing HIV, organizers of the XVIII International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2010) taking place in Vienna, Austria said today.
Fellowships for outstanding research in drug use and HIV are presented by the International AIDS Society and the National Institute on Drug Abuse at AIDS 2010 – The International AIDS Society (IAS) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) today announced the recipients of their second annual joint research fellowships. Recipients of the prestigious awards will receive US$75,000 each to advance the scientific understanding of the linkage between illicit drug use and HIV, while fostering multinational research.
Tests help predict falls in Parkinson’s disease – A group of tests may help predict which people with Parkinson’s disease are more likely to fall, according to a study published in the June 23, 2010, online issue of Neurology?, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
