Let's All Have Lots of Casual Sex!!!!! Posted: 02-14-05 11:53am
Rare drug-resistant hiv found in nyc
by verena dobnik
associated press writer
new york — city health officials are
working to track down sex partners of a
man diagnosed with a rare strain of highly
drug-resistant hiv that progressed rapidly
to aids.
"we are not aware of another case like
this in the united states, or elsewhere,"
said Dr. Ron valdiserri, deputy director
of the centers for disease control and
prevention's national center for hiv, std,
and tb prevention.
Health commissioner Dr. Thomas frieden
said the rare hiv strain is "difficult or
impossible to treat."
the new york times, citing a person
familiar with the case whom it did not
identify, reported saturday that the man
was believed to have had unprotected sex
with hundreds of people.
The man — who had not previously undergone
antiviral drug treatment — was diagnosed
with the rare strain in december 2004.
He apparently had been infected recently
after years of having unprotected anal
intercourse.
The city has not released his name, but
health officials are trying to locate his
sex partners to offer them testing.
The onset of aids appears to have occurred
within two to three months, and at most 20
months, after infection. Frieden said
hiv can take 10 years to develop into
aids.
Drug resistance is increasingly common
among hiv-positive people, including some
who had never been treated before, but not
with such a fast progression to aids,
valdiserri said.
The man's hiv did not respond to three of
four types of antiviral drugs most
commonly prescribed; he is now receiving a
fourth regimen, health officials said.
Typically, drug resistance occurs after a
patient is treated with the drugs, often
because the patient veers from the
prescribed course. In this case,
resistance occurred from the start of
treatment, and was combined with a rapid
progression to aids.
Valdiserri said that "double whammy" of
resistance and rapid progression made the
case alarming.
"the message to the american public is
that hiv remains a very formidable
adversary. We can't let down our
vigilance," valdiserri said.
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