11A
LIFESTYLES / The Charlotte Post
Thursday, January 30, 1997
HEALTHY BODY/ HEALTHY MIND
Aids infected twins get radical treatment
By Daniel Q. Haney
THE ASSOCUTED PRESS
WASHINGTON - A pioneering
attempt to cine a pair of AIDS-
infected newborn twins has
resulted in apparent control of
the virus in a baby girl but fail
ure in her brother.
The babies caught the virus
from their mother, who did not
know she was infected with
HIV. Treatment with three
AIDS drugs started when the
babies were 10 weeks old. They
are now 18 months old.
At first, both babies seemed to
respond weU to the treatment.
Most signs of the virus disap
peared ^m their blood.
However, two months ago, the
virus returned in the boy.
Meanwhile, his sister remains
virus firee, although doctors are
hardly ready to declare her
cured.
But that is their aim.
“Our goal is very long-term
suppression of HIV with poten
tial eradication,” said Dr.
Katherine Luzuriaga of the
University of Massachusetts
Medical School.
Luzuriaga described the
babies’ treatment Saturday at
the fourth annual Conference on
Retroviruses and Opportunistic
Infections.
This and other studies in
adults will help determine
whether it is indeed possible to
cure an AIDS infection. Doctors
say that ridding the body of HIV
is theoretically possible,
although for many patients the
best that may be expected is
keeping the virus from flaring
up and making them sick.
The twin study “raises the big
question; Can we eradicate the
virus? We don’t know yet, but if
we are going to by, we want to
do it as soon as the infection
occurs,” said Dr. Catherine
Wilfert of Duke University.
That’s why doctors are
intrigued by the twins.
Presumably, if AIDS can be
cmed, it is most likely to hap
pen in those whose immune sys
tems have not already been
wrecked by HIV.
Dr. David Ho and others from
the Aaron Diamond AIDS
Research Center in New York
are attempting to cure AIDS in
adults by aggressively treating
them within a few months of
catching the virus.
The idea is to give medicines
that stop infected cells from pro
ducing new copies of HIV. This
way, the spread of the virus
through the body is stopped,
and eventually the infected cells
die off naturally.
Ho estimates that the entire
process will take between two
and three years, assuming that
clusters of infected cells don’t
survive in places that are
beyond the reach of the drugs,
such as the brain.
Ho’s study, and others getting
under way, offer a triple regi
men of two older AIDS medi
cines plus a protease inhibitor,
the new class of drugs that has
revolutionized AIDS care.
However, the Massachusetts
tvrins were bom before protease
inhibitors were available. So
they are being treated with the
drugs AZT, ddl and nevirapine.
“It’s very encouraging that one
can maintain suppression of the
virus for this long,” but that par
ticular combination of medicines
“won’t be maximally effective,”
said Dr. Joep Lange of the
University of Amsterdam.
Indeed, six other babies
besides the twins were started
on the combination, and it failed
in all of them.
Meanwhile, after using the
most sensitive tests available,
the baby girl’s blood shows no
signs of HIV. Moreover, she
does not have any antibodies to
the AIDS virus, suggesting that
her immune system is not
detecting it.
However, some of her cells did
become infected, probably before
the treatment started. Tests
show that the virus is inside
about 150 of every one miUion
blood cells that ordinarily are
attacked by HIV. If aU goes well,
these infected cells will eventu
ally die off naturally without
releasing any new copies of the
virus.
“I would be very cautiously
optimistic that over the next
two to three years, we will be
able to learn whether eradica
tion of an HIV infection is possi
ble,” said Luzuriaga.
Pain/rain connection explored
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
ST. LOUIS - Velma Miller fig
ures her knees are more accu
rate than the meteorologists
when it comes predicting rain.
Miller, 62, of the St. Louis
suburb University City, suf
fers from rheumatoid arthri
tis. During the last decade,
she says, her throbbing knees
have never missed a rain fore
cast. Her joints tell her up to
24 hours ahead of time when
rain is heading her way.
“In the morning, I feel sore,
and I can hardly get up if it is
going to rain,” she said.
Approaching cold weather also
causes the pain.
Other arthritics agree and
insist they can tell by the pain
in their knees, hips and
elbows whether the baromet
ric pressure is going up, or if
rain or snow is on the way.
All this puzzles doctors, who
acknowledge they do not know
why it happens. They decry
the lack of scientific studies on
the weather-arthritis connec
tion, which they say could
lead to better treatments.
Anyone can get arthritis. As
many as 100,000 children are
affected. The Arthritis
Foundation estimates that 37
million Americans suffer from
some form of the disease, with
about 80 percent requiring
medical treatment. Arthritis
accounts for one out of every
five house-bound patients.
Arthritis has about 150 dif
ferent types; osteoarthritis
and rheumatoid arthritis are
the most common. Experts say
it does not appear to matter
what kind a patient has when
it comes to weather and more
pain.
The weather also affects peo
ple with broken arms and bro
ken legs that have started to
heal.
“The reality is that there is
no science to back it up, but
people feel it,” said Dr. Sherry
Shuman, a rheumatologist at
Barnes-Jewish Hospital.
She said no scientific studies
showed that barometric pres
sure or rain put more pressure
on arthritic joints; however,
every doctor knows it hap
pens. They only have to look
in their waiting rooms.
“When it is going to rain, I
know that people are going to
come in a little late and they
are going to be moving a little
slower,” said Shuman, who
treats hundreds of patientjs
with arthritis.
If you are having trouble
receiving your subscription
to the Post please contact us
at 704-376-0496
Thank you
ABILITY
TRANSPORT
SERVICES, INC.
HANDICAPPED RAMP VEHICLES
“To Assist In Maintaining
Your Normal Way Of Life"
Providing Trips To And From:
Doctors - Shopping - Site Seeing and More
Offering Affordable Rates and
A Driver With Experience and Patience.
Call For Cost & Information
☆ RENTAL VANS AVAILABLE ☆
; Sliding Scale Fee Available
‘ Liability Insurance Required •
E.S. Hannah (704)588-4800 D.D. Muixen
Around Charlotte
Welch
•Millie
Welch of Iron
Gate Lane
recently had
three poems,
“A Beautiful
Day,” “A Little
Angel,” and
“With Nand,”
published by
The National
Library of
Poetry. Welch has been writing
for 15 years about family experi
ences.
•Barnes & Noble, 5837 East
Independence Blvd., will host
Salisbury poet Peggy Bamhardt
Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
•The Florida A&M University
Alumni Association Charlotte
Chapter will sponsor a campus
visitation, March 6-9. Cost is
$100, which includes food and
lodging. For more information,
call 599-0501. 1116 association
meets every second Friday at
Friendship Missionary Baptist
Church at 6;30 p.m.
•The Charlotte Clean City
Committee is accepting nomina
tions for the 13th Annual
Community Enhancement
Awards. The awai'd recognizes
properties in the county which
continue to help make the com
munity a better place in which
to live. Nominations will be
accepted for building design,
landscape, clean builder, renova
tion, restoration and litter con
trol. For more mftirmation, call
336-6399.
•Young Black Professionals of
Charlotte will start a profession
al bowling league for organiza
tions. An organizational meeting
will be held March 7. For more
information, call Anika Khan at
581-2302.
•Scholarship Auditions for the
Canon Music Camp at
Appalachian State University
will be held at St. Luke’s
Lutheran Church, 3200 Park
Road Feb. 10 at 5:30. 'The camp
provides instruction in perfor
mance, theory, history and jazz
improvisation. For more infor
mation call Ashley Barrett at
332-0468 or ceunp director Jay
C. Jackson at 262-4091.
•Portraits of Color, an art edu
cation organization, is accepting
applications for its cultural arts
and development programs for
children through age 18. Classes
begin Monday and end May 22.
Classes will be held at the
Hawthorne Recreation &
Commimity Center. Cost is $125
per discipline. For more informa
tion, call 535-3633.
•Crisis Assistance Ministry is
m need of volunteers. For more
information, call Anne Davant
at 371-3000, extension 114.
•Homes are needed for at-risk
children. For more information,
call Lutheran Family Services at
342-9785.
•The Charlotte Writer’s Club
sponsors its annual Children’s
Stoiy Contest. Entry fee is $5 for
non members. For more infor
mation and contest rules, call
541-8454.
A teen conference will be held
Saturday at the University
Memorial Union on the Campus
of Johnson C. Smith. The confer
ence is free and includes a youth
step competition. For more infor
mation or to register, caU 330-
1315.
•The Caregiver Support
Group will meet Tuesday at 7
p.m. at the Adult Care and
Share, 6709 Idlewild Road. For
more information, call 567-2700.
•Heart to Heart Teen Theatre
on Dating Violence will perform
at Matthews Community Center
on Sunday and Feb. 9 at 6 p.m.
For more information, call 332-
2513.
•The Independence Chapter of
American Business Women’s
Association will meet 'Tuesday
at 6:15 p.m. at the Holiday Inn,
Independence. Cost is $14 for
dinner. For more information,
call 552-0800.
•The Charlotte Quilter’s Guild
will meet Wednesday at 7 p.m.
at St. Ann’s Catholic Church.
•M.K. Kim Karate will offer a
free self-defense and awareness
clinic for women Feb. 6 at 7 p.m.
and Feb. 8 at 10 a.m. The center
is located at the corner of
Highway 521 and Highway 51
across from Huntley Marine.
Upcoming events
•Poet Dot Thompson will read
her poems and the works of
other poets featured in “My Soul
is a Witness: African American
Women’s Spirituality” Feb. 6 at
7:30 p.m.
•Feb. 7 is National Black
Nurses Day. A reception, spon
sored by the Charlotte Chapter
of the National Black Nurses
Association, Good Samaritan
Hospital Nurses Association
and Chi Eta Phi Sorority - Iota
Chapter, will be held at the
Ddworth Inn, 1223 East Blvd at
6 p.m. Admission is free.
•Carmel Middle School will
host a Career Fair Feb. 12 from
8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Local busi
ness win be able to set up booths
and display information, adver
tisements and equipment repre
sentative of your field. For more
information, call 343-8709.
•National Council of Negro
Women will host National
African American Parent
Involvement Day, Feb. 10.
NAAPID is a national call for
parents to become more involved
in their children’s education.
• • •
’The group will also sponsor a
Brotherhood Diimer, Feb. 15 at
7 p.m. at McDonald’s Cafeteria,
2810 Beatties Ford Road. For
more information, call Mattie
Caldwell at 376-9955 or
Thomasina Johnson at 375-
8263.
Please Fax or Deliver
Around Charlotte News
to the Post by 5:00 on
Monday
Fax: 342-2160
-as* CW Williams
f Health Center
3333 Wilkinson Blvd. • (704)393-7720
"We Provide Primary & Preventive MedicdfiMre
for the ENTIRE FAMILY"
On Siii & Laboratory Services'
Call For Appointment or Information
Hours: Wed. & Fri, 8:30am - 5:30pm^
OPEN THREE EVENINGS FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE
Mon, Tue. & Thur. 8:30am - 8:30pm
Medicare ♦ Medicaid • Sliding Fee • CostwiseyPCP • Private Ins.
"Where Care and Compassion
Comes Together"
BIG LEAGUE SPORTS ARE HERE
WHICH WILL COME FIRST?
SUPERBOWL? N.B.A. CHAMPLONSHIP?
CHAPtL,OTTE
HASN’T HAD
EITHER ONE
BUT
A WORLD
CHAMPION
BOXER,
KELVIN SEABROOKS,
and
HIS CHIROPRACTOR
KELVIN SEABROOKS
COMMUNITY RELATIONS DIRECTOR wV AA A A
OF A & W CLINIC, HELPS KEEP KELVIN’S BACK IN SHAPE
IF YOUR BACK OR NECK IS INJURED
DR. DENNIS WATTS, D.C.
WITH 3 OFFICES ON: BEA'TTIES FORD, WILKINSON & THE PLAZA
OUR STAFF WILL TREAT YOU LIKE A WORLD CHAMPION