HIV on Trial - Part III

Several informative articles were recently posted to our web site at: www.articlesofhealth.blogspot.com

T Cells and Viral Load:

Faith in Quick Test Leads to Epidemic That Wasnt(January 22, 2007 New York Times)
Nearly 1,000 health care workers at a New Hampshire hospital were given a PCRtest in response to a scare started by a coughing staff member. The results: 142people were told they appeared to have the disease, thousands were givenantibiotics and a vaccine, and hospital beds were taken out of commission.Months later, hospital administrators informed the staff the whole thing hadbeen a false alarm no one on staff had the disease. The conclusion: No singletest result is absolute and that is even more important with a test result basedon PCR.

AIDS Drugs Facts and Myths:

New AIDS Drug Study is Flawed and Biased: No Proof Taking AIDS Drugs is Better Than Taking Nothing Responding to a study on AIDS drugs published in the Nov. 30, 2006 issue of theNew England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), scientists from the non-profit publicinterest group Rethinking AIDS state the trial's conclusions are flawed and thatthe idea that AIDS drug interruptions are dangerous is based on unprovenassumptions. According to Dr. Etienne de Harven, a pioneer in virology researchand electron microscopy and President of RA, The NEJM study does not provideevidence that taking AIDS drugs is better than not taking them...'

The Bigger Picture:

Denial By Frank Furedi, Spiked Online 'The charge of denial has become a secular form of blasphemy ... The heretic iscondemned because he has dared to question an authority that must never bequestioned. Here, overwhelming evidence serves as the equivalent of revealedreligious truth, and those who question 'scientists of unquestioned reputation'that is, the new priestly caste are guilty of blasphemy ... 'Denial' hasbecome part of a secular inquisition that stigmatizes free thinking.'

Preaching the Climate Catechism By Lorne Gunter, National Post 'Since 2003, the upper layer of the Atlantic has lost 25% of the extra heat ithad built up in the past three decadesThe broad consensus among solar scientistsis that the Earth's warming is almost entirely explicable by increased solaractivity that began about 100 years ago, and which will end around 2020But theseinconvenient truths would be bad for the cause...'

US Government Pushes Tests with 84% False Positive Results A new mental health surveillance test with close to 90% false positive resultsis currently recommended for use among all American children by the USgovernment. Backed and promoted by pharmaceutical companies and questionedby liberals and conservatives alike, the tests come under fire in two articles fromopposite ends of the political spectrum that both reach the same conclusion:tests are a drug industry dream come true and a public health nightmare.

Bill Gates: Philanthropist or Profiteering Polluter?

The LA Times reports on the contradictory activities of the Bill & Melinda GatesFoundation which has more than $60 billion at its disposal, an amount higherthan the gross domestic products of 70 percent of the world's nations. TheGates Foundation invests millions of dollars in corporations, which pollute thesame areas of Africa that are targeted for vaccines and medicines made bycompanies that Gates also funds.

The Secrets in Eli Lilly's Cabinet: The Dangers of ZyprexaBy Evelyn Pringle To date, Lilly has agreed to pay about $1.2 billion to settle claims withroughly 26,000 litigants who alleged among other things, that Eli Lilly companypromoted the sale of Zyprexa for off-label uses and concealed the health risksassociated with the drug. A lawsuit filed on behalf of private health insurersaccuses Lilly of violating racketeering laws, in part, by bankrolling nonprofitgroups to promote Zyprexa for unapproved uses and to downplay the medicine'sside effects.

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Celia Farber Cover Story of Canadian Magazine

Excerpted from Fast Forward Weekly; read the full story at: http://ffwdweekly.com/Issues/2006/1214/cover.htm

One of the most tragic stories of the AIDS crisis is the excoriation of thosejournalists, researchers, patients whose voices are silenced by a 20-yearorthodoxy of media hype, drug money and scientific stardom. Journalist CeliaFarber, deemed controversial and an HIV denialist by many, has spent twodecades reporting the dark, greedy history of AIDS, played out by drugcompanies, the government and people on the street.

Her new book, Serious Adverse Events: An Uncensored History of AIDS (MelvilleHouse, 348 pp.), is a collection of her AIDS reportage, many of the piecesupdated or revised for the book. Uncensored is a most appropriate word for thisoutsiders account of the shady world of the AIDS industry in which, as Farberhas learned, to even ask questions that dont conform to orthodox views conjureshatred. These include pieces on protease viagra drugs and their toxicity,AIDS patients who test HIV-negative and, simply, whether HIV causes AIDS.

Recently, Farber published an article in Harpers Magazine ('Out of Control,'March 2006) detailing the twisted history of HIVNET, a clinical trial for thedrug nevirapine, which ended up an unmitigated disaster of corrupt andinconclusive data (National Institute of Health director of clinical researchoperations, Jonathan Fishbein, exposed the story and was fired). The article isprefaced with the tragic story of Joyce Ann Hafford, a pregnant woman who, atthe time, tested positive for HIV. She was part of a clinical trial involvingthe same drug, to which she had a deadly reaction that ultimately killed her.

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From the Same Folks Who Claim You Cant Miss a Dose: Taking AIDS Drugs Halfthe Time is Just Fine

Perfect Adherence to NNRTI Therapy Not Necessary for HIV SuppressionBy Martha Kerr
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Oct 04 - Suppression of HIV levels can be achievedwith nonnucleoside reverse-transcriptase cialis (NNRTI) therapy adherencerates below 60%, according to a report in the October 1st issue of ClinicalInfectious Diseases.

The study's author, Dr. David R. Bangsberg at the University of California atSan Francisco, told Reuters Health that while perfect adherence to NNRTI therapyis the ideal, it may not be completely necessary.

Earlier studies conducted in 2001 set a 'threshold' of 95% adherence toantiviral therapy in order to achieve adequate HIV suppression. At that time,unboosted protease inhibitor-based regimens were the best therapy available tosuppress HIV replication. Since then, more potent drugs have been developed,including NNRTI agents.

Dr. Bangsberg and colleagues identified 330 HIV-positive patients in the Research on Access to Care in the Homeless (REACH) cohort. About half were onprotease inhibitor therapy and about half received NNRTI therapy.

The investigators used unannounced pill counts and electronic medication monitoring to assess medication adherence.

Average adherence to antiviral therapy was 70%. For patients on NNRTI therapy,viral loads were suppressed to less than 400 copies/mL with adherence rates thatranged from 54% to 100%. In contrast, patients on protease inhibitors requiredadherence rates between 95% and 100% to achieve the same level of suppression.

'Treatment (of HIV infection) has changed since 2001 when the adherencethresholds were set,' Dr. Bangsberg told Reuters Health. 'These data show thatmore moderate levels of adherence can achieve viral suppression.'

Nonetheless, he added, 'More is still better ... Perfect adherence is best, butpatients should be told to get as close as they can.'

Also, he concluded, 'An important message to physicians is that patients with ahigh likelihood of non-adherence, such as those with mental disorders or thehomeless, may still do just fine.' (Clin Infect Dis 2006;43:939-941)

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Vocal AIDS Activists Suddenly Silent: The Pathology Report No Ones Talking About
Dr Nicholas Bennett, a resident in pediatrics at SUNY and self-proclaimed experton the tragic death of Eliza Jane Scovill, has no comment on a new report in thecase which for the first time publishes photographs of lung tissue slides whichBennett and others AIDS activists expected would support their belief in the LACounty Coroners decision that Christine Maggiores daughter died of pneumonia inMay of 2005.

Bennett and Dr David Gorsky, aka Orac, are among the once vociferous critics ofpathologist Dr Mohammed Ali Al-Bayati who concluded that Eliza Jane died as aresult of an allergic reaction to the antibiotic amoxicillin, prescribed for anear infection the day before the three and a half year-old suddenly went intocardiac arrest at the family home.

A link to the new report by Al-Bayati is posted on the home page at theJusticeForEJ.com web site. Also new at the site, witness testimony requested byLos Angeles Police Department investigators as part of the year long effort tocharge Maggiore with negligent homicide in her daughters death:http://www.justiceforej.com/ej-testimony-evidence.html

Bennett and Gorsky also went silent when given an opportunity to engage in apublic debate with Maggiore on the HIV hypothesis and their charges that herdaughter died as a result of AIDS denialism. Their refusal to speak up isdocumented in an entertaining exchange with agent provocateur Casey Cohenposted at the new Rethinking AIDS web site at:
http://www.rethinkingaids.com/challenges/bennett-cohen-ejreport.html
http://www.rethinkingaids.com/challenges/Cohen-Gorski.html
http://www.rethinkingaids.com/challenges/bennett-cohen-debate.html

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High blood pressure and sex - Overcome the challenges

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MayoClinic.com

High blood pressure often has no signs or symptoms. But the impact on your sex life may be unmistakable. Although sexual activity seldom poses cardiovascular risks — such as causing a heart attack — high blood pressure can affect your overall satisfaction with sex. Both men and women face specific challenges.
Challenges for men

Over time, high blood pressure damages the lining of your blood vessels and promotes hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis). This means less blood flows to your penis. For some men, the decreased blood flow makes it difficult to achieve and maintain erections.

Even a single episode of erectile dysfunction can be a source of anxiety. Fears that it will happen again might lead you to avoid sex — and erode your relationship with your sexual partner.

High blood pressure can also interfere with ejaculation and reduce sexual desire. Sometimes the medications used to treat high blood pressure have similar effects.
Challenges for women

Sexual dysfunction in women hasn't been well researched. However, current studies indicate that sexual dysfunction could be even more common in women than in men. And high blood pressure — or the medications to treat it — may only increase the risk.

High blood pressure can reduce blood flow to your vagina. For some women, this leads to a decrease in sexual desire or arousal, vaginal dryness or difficulty achieving orgasm. Like men, women can experience anxiety and relationship issues due to sexual dysfunction.
Be honest with your doctor

If you have high blood pressure, you don't have to resign yourself to loss of sexual satisfaction. Start by talking with your doctor. The more your doctor knows about you, the better he or she can treat your high blood pressure — and help you maintain a satisfying sex life. Be prepared to answer questions such as:

* What medications are you taking?
* Has your relationship with your sexual partner changed recently?
* Do you have more than one sexual partner?
* Have you been feeling depressed?
* Are you facing more stress than usual?

Consider your medications

Sexual dysfunction is a side effect of some high blood pressure medications, including diuretics and beta blockers. To reduce the risk of side effects, including sexual problems, take your medication exactly as prescribed.

If that doesn't help, ask your doctor about other options. Some high blood pressure medications — such as angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and calcium channel blockers — are less likely to cause sexual side effects. To help your doctor select the most appropriate medication for you, list all the other medications you're taking now — including herbal supplements and over-the-counter drugs. Sometimes a particular combination of medications contributes to sexual problems.

If your doctor approves, you may be able to stop taking blood pressure medication temporarily to see if your sex life improves. To make sure your blood pressure remains within a safe range, you may need frequent blood pressure readings while you're not taking medication. Sometimes this can be done with a home blood pressure monitoring device.

If you're considering medication for erectile dysfunction, check with your doctor first. It's usually safe to combine the erectile dysfunction drugs sildenafil (Viagra), vardenafil (Levitra) or tadalafil (Cialis) with high blood pressure medications. But taking these drugs with nitrates for chest pain can cause a dangerous drop in blood pressure.
Promote overall health

Staying tobacco-free, eating healthy foods and exercising regularly can reduce your blood pressure — and improve your sex life. In fact, in one study, about one-third of obese men with erectile dysfunction improved their sexual function by losing weight. Of course, a leaner body can boost your confidence and help you feel more attractive, which also bodes well for your sex life.
Set the stage for satisfying sex

Your sexual response may vary with feelings about your partner and the setting in which sex occurs. To encourage satisfying sex, initiate sex when you and your partner are feeling relaxed. Explore various ways to be physically intimate, such as massage or warm soaks in the tub. Share with each other the types of sexual activity you enjoy most. You may find that open communication is the best way to achieve sexual satisfaction.

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Take Your Medicine & more...

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There is all sorts of good stuff over at Take Your Medicine. A lot of Bloc Party, Futureheads, Kaiser Chiefs, Zutons and more, but before you go...

Beck - Sex Laws
The Polyphonic Spree - Section Seven Hanging Around
The Libertines - Boys In The Band
Radiohead - There There
Apollo 440 - Stop The Rock
Depeche Mode - Enjoy The Silence
Stevie Wonder - I Just Called To Say I Love You - much respect to Stevie...I love him.

So, what's new? Got any questions or recommendations for Ol' Dodge? You can email me or comment and tell me. Who's the hot band you are interested in? TV show? Movie?

Because you all need to remember that no matter what other bastards say, you are sexy too: Right Said Fred - I'm Too Sexy

Check out Athlete. These guys are good. There album is over at Open Dir. Very Coldplayesque, but with some jazzy and electronic elements.