[afro-nets] Multi-drug resistant HIV strain found in New York

[Claudio Schuftan <claudio@hcmc.netnam.vn>]

Multi-drug resistant HIV strain found in New York
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DRUG RESISTANT HIV STRAIN FOUND

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4260467.stm#

Health officials in New York say they have found a new strain of
highly drug-resistant HIV in a city resident. The resident, a
man in his mid-40s, is thought to have developed Aids much
faster than usual after infection. The strain - known as 3-DCR
HIV - has not been detected anywhere else in the world and is
"difficult or impossible to treat", according to health experts.

The discovery prompted renewed warnings from city health offi-
cials for people to practise safe sex. New York health workers
are now hunting other possible cases of the strain. Experts say
drug resistance is increasingly common among people with HIV,
but not when accompanied by such a quick progression to Aids.

'Wake-up call'
Officials said he frequently used the drug crystal methampheta-
mine, a stimulant taken to reduce sexual inhibitions. The man -
who has not been named - is thought have been infected quite re-
cently, and developed Aids between two and 20 months after in-
fection. Progression to Aids usually takes about 10 years.

The strain was found to be resistant to three out of the four
commonest anti-retroviral drugs. Ronald Valdiserri, director of
the HIV/Aids programme at the US Centers for Disease Control, no
similar case had been found anywhere in the world.

"What's unique about this is the combination of multiple drug
resistance and a rapid course," he told the New York Times news-
paper. "To folks in the public health community, that is a par-
ticularly dangerous combination." However, some Aids specialists
outside New York have cast doubt on the alarm, saying that the
man's immune system may already have been compromised, the news-
paper said.