Spring Break
High HIV rates in Thailand linked to rare viral strain
Issue date: 12/6/07
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Worldwide, more than 33 million people are currently living with HIV or AIDS. But the effect of this disease is felt much more strongly in poorer areas, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia.
AIDS is the third-most common cause of death in low-income countries and the fifth-most common in middle-income countries, but it doesn't even make the top ten in the wealthiest areas of the western world.
Despite the disproportionate impact of HIV and AIDS in such regions, little research has been performed specifically in these areas. For instance, it is known that different subtypes of the virus are found in different parts of the world, but this finding has not been rigorously correlated with disease progression.
Two recent studies led by Kenrad Nelson of the Bloomberg School of Public Health and scientists from Thai research institutions and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention surveyed people in Thailand over a span of nearly two decades to determine the amount of time between infection with HIV subtypes and death.
In one study, men in the Royal Thai Army were surveyed to determine whether HIV infection had already taken place. This was done via seroconversion analysis, whereby the blood is examined for new antibodies against HIV.
If these antibodies are present, then one can confirm that the patient is HIV-positive and was infected relatively recently. Men were tested every six months to determine an accurate window of infection.
Follow-up studies were then performed up to 14 years after seroconversion. Results showed that the median time from seroconversion to death was 7.8 years and from seroconversion to development of clinical AIDS as 7.2 years for HIV subtype E, a strain most prevalent in Southeast Asia.
In another study, scientists tracked the progression of the disease in Thai couples infected with HIV. They found that the median survival was 8.2 years and that the survival times did not differ significantly between men and women.
AIDS is the third-most common cause of death in low-income countries and the fifth-most common in middle-income countries, but it doesn't even make the top ten in the wealthiest areas of the western world.
Despite the disproportionate impact of HIV and AIDS in such regions, little research has been performed specifically in these areas. For instance, it is known that different subtypes of the virus are found in different parts of the world, but this finding has not been rigorously correlated with disease progression.
Two recent studies led by Kenrad Nelson of the Bloomberg School of Public Health and scientists from Thai research institutions and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention surveyed people in Thailand over a span of nearly two decades to determine the amount of time between infection with HIV subtypes and death.
In one study, men in the Royal Thai Army were surveyed to determine whether HIV infection had already taken place. This was done via seroconversion analysis, whereby the blood is examined for new antibodies against HIV.
If these antibodies are present, then one can confirm that the patient is HIV-positive and was infected relatively recently. Men were tested every six months to determine an accurate window of infection.
Follow-up studies were then performed up to 14 years after seroconversion. Results showed that the median time from seroconversion to death was 7.8 years and from seroconversion to development of clinical AIDS as 7.2 years for HIV subtype E, a strain most prevalent in Southeast Asia.
In another study, scientists tracked the progression of the disease in Thai couples infected with HIV. They found that the median survival was 8.2 years and that the survival times did not differ significantly between men and women.
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