AFRO-NETS> Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report - Tues, 08 Jan 2002

[Cecilia Snyder <csnyder@ccmc.org>]

Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report - Tues, 08 Jan 2002
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* Two-Thirds of Rwandan Women Raped During Genocide Have HIV, Study
  Says
* Vitamin A Supplements Improve Growth in African Children Infected
  With HIV, Malaria
* CORRECTION

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Two-Thirds of Rwandan Women Raped During Genocide Have HIV, Study 
Says

Two-thirds of the "many thousands" of Rwandan women who were raped 
during the 1994 Rwandan genocide are infected with HIV, according to 
a group representing female survivors of the genocide, Agence France-
Presse reports. Avega-Agahozo, which conducted the study, represents 
"widows of the genocide." An estimated 500,000 to 800,000 people were 
killed in the genocide, which was "mainly carried out by extremists 
from the majority Hutu ethnic group on members of the Tutsi group and 
on moderate Hutus," Agence France-Presse reports. Rwandan health of-
ficials estimate that 400,000 of the 7.7 million Rwandan citizens are 
HIV-positive. The overall HIV/AIDS infection rate among Rwandan 
adults is "believed to be 10%," with infection rates ranging from 3% 
to 10% in rural areas and 15% to 25% in cities, according to the 
Rwandan National AIDS Treatment and Research Center (Agence France-
Presse, 1/7).


--
Vitamin A Supplements Improve Growth in African Children Infected 
With HIV, Malaria

Children with infectious diseases, such as HIV and malaria, who were 
given high-dosage vitamin A supplements showed greater height and 
weight gains than children receiving placebos, according to a study 
in this month's issue of Pediatrics, the AP/South Florida Sun-
Sentinel reports (AP/South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 1/7). Dr. Eduardo 
Villamor of Harvard University and researchers from Muhimbili Univer-
sity College of Health Sciences in Dar es Salaam observed 554 Tanza-
nian children between the ages of six months and five years for up to 
12 months. All of the children in the study were hospitalized with 
pneumonia at the outset and were assigned at the time of hospital ad-
mission to receive either two oral doses of 200,000 international 
units of vitamin A (infants received a half dose) or a placebo. 
Twenty-four percent of the children had malaria and 9% were diagnosed 
with HIV. The children in the treatment group received additional 
doses of vitamin A at intervals of four months and eight months after 
release from the hospital. All of the children were monitored every 
other week through clinic visits and home monitoring for respiratory 
infection and diarrhea incidence and severity and were measured for 
height and weight gains (Villamor et al., Pediatrics, January 2002).

Results

Although large doses of vitamin A can cause side effects such as 
liver damage, the doses given to the children were within guidelines 
recommended by international aid agencies, and no side effects were 
reported. At the four-month mark, infants with HIV who were given the 
supplements had grown an inch more on average than their counterparts 
who received placebos. The growth difference remained constant for 
the remainder of the follow-up period. Children taking vitamin A also 
gained about one pound more than those who received placebos, with 
infants with malaria recording a "slightly greater difference" than 
those with HIV (AP/South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 1/7). The risk of 
stunted growth associated with persistent diarrhea lasting two weeks 
or more was also "virtually eliminated" by the supplements 
(AP/Newsday, 1/7). Therefore, the researchers concluded that vitamin 
A supplementation "could constitute a low-cost, effective interven-
tion to decrease the burden of growth retardation in settings where 
infectious diseases are highly prevalent" (Pediatrics, January 2002). 


--
CORRECTION

Due to an error published in the Washington Times, yesterday's Kaiser 
Daily HIV/AIDS Report story on U.N. Envoy for AIDS in Africa Stephen 
Lewis improperly indicated that the Organization for Economic Coop-
eration and Development's voluntary target for international develop-
ment assistance is 0.07% of gross national product and that average 
national expenditures are currently at 0.02% of GNP (Pisik, Washing-
ton Times, 1/7). According to an OECD release, the correct voluntary 
goal set by OECD is 0.7% of GNP and aid as a proportion of member 
countries' combined GNP was 0.22% in 2000 (OECD release, 12/12/2001). 

--
The Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, 
a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, by National 
Journal Group Inc. © 2002 by National Journal Group Inc. and Kaiser 
Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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