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The study’s authors note that potential associations between school-based condom education and sexual health outcomes, including STD diagnoses, are not well understood. In the current study, sexually active men over age 18 were asked whether they had been tested for and diagnosed with any of six commonly reported STDs including HIV, and whether they had received condom instruction in a sexual health education class in high school. Recruitment included advertisements in newspapers, Web sites, and STD/HIV organizations in all 50 states. Among 1,152 participants in the sample, the mean age was 26 years. The men self-identified as white (84 percent), Asian (7 percent), black (2 percent), other (7 percent), and Latino (6 percent). Most (87 percent) reported they were heterosexual, with the remainder identifying as gay, bisexual or other (13 percent); and most were currently in a monogamous relationship (74 percent). Of the sample, 81 percent reported receiving school-based condom education, while 19 percent said they did not. Men who had received condom instruction were significantly less likely to have ever been diagnosed with five of the six STDs assessed, while being more likely to have been screened. Among three age groups (ages 18-25, 26-35 or 36 and older), the men age 35 and above were more likely to have had an STD and less likely to have been taught in a school setting how to use a condom. “In this study, we showed that men who received school-based condom education were less likely to have been diagnosed with sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and were more likely to ever have been tested for STIs than were men without such education,” concluded the authors. “School-based condom education is associated with less, rather than more, STI risk.” [Article source: http://www.ajph.org]

In a high-profile media campaign launched on Feb. 14, 2007, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) introduced the “NYC Condom.” This male condom - a standard-size, lubricated Lifestyles brand - was the first specially packaged condom unique to a municipality. The department distributed 5 million of the condoms to city organizations and businesses during the first month, and since has distributed an average of 3.4 million condoms each month. The researchers undertook the current study of sexually active New Yorkers “to measure awareness of and experience with the NYC Condom, and demand for and experience with other male condoms.” From July through September 2007, the researchers conducted a street intercept survey at seven large public events in the city where attendees were mainly persons of color and gay persons. City residents age 18 and older were eligible to participate. A time-space sampling methodology was used; respondents were offered a $4 transit card as an incentive. In all, 933 people were approached; 464 answered screening questions; and 293 met all criteria for inclusion. Most participants (76 percent) had seen or heard of the condom, of whom 75 percent had picked one up. Among those who had acquired an NYC Condom, 68.5 percent had used it. Respondents who had used the NYC Condom were asked to rate it on a scale of 1 (much worse than other male condoms) to 10 (much better). The resulting average rating was 6.55. Respondents were then asked what additional types of condoms they would like the department to provide. The most often named varieties were ultra-thin/extra-sensitive (22 percent), extra-strength (18 percent), and larger-size (14 percent). “These results indicate that condom social marketing campaigns can successfully translate into condom use,” the authors wrote. “Although this is the first large-scale condom distribution campaign conducted in a US city, other campaigns have documented that distributing free condoms promotes use.” “Data on use, acceptability, and preferences for various condom types can guide program planning and development,” the authors concluded. “On the basis of these results, DOHMH began distributing alternative condoms in November 2008, including this study’s most frequently named types: ultra-thin/extra-sensitive, extra-strength, and larger-size.” [Article source: http://www.ajph.org]

Women should have their first cervical cancer screening at age 21, and most can be rescreened less frequently than previously recommended, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) said today. The new guidelines are based on scientific evidence that more frequent testing does not prevent significantly more cases of the cancer, which is caused by the STD human papillomavirus (HPV). “We really felt that the downsides of more frequent screening outweighed any benefits,” said Alan G. Waxman, an OB/GYN professor at the University of New Mexico who led ACOG’s revision. “More testing is not always more intelligent testing.” Under prior guidelines, women were to start annual cervical screening within three years of becoming sexually active. Now ACOG says women can wait to start until age 21, regardless of age at sexual debut. Women younger than 30 can be rescreened once every two years rather than annually, and women age 30 and older whose previous three tests are negative can be rescreened every three years, ACOG says. Women at increased risk, however, should continue to be screened more frequently, it said. Annual testing for low-risk women could precipitate unnecessary stress, anxiety, and potentially harmful interventions - all to treat growths that would not necessarily cause problems, ACOG found. HPV is not unusual among sexually active young girls and women, and because the cervix is immature, their incidence of precancerous lesions is higher. Nonetheless, HPV infection clears within one to two years among most adolescents, and the large majority of cervical dysplasias among adolescents resolve on their own, ACOG said. Cervical cancer is very rare in women under age 21, ACOG said. And the cancer grows relatively slowly, so waiting until age 21 to screen would not pose a significant risk, the organization concluded. The new guidelines are published in ACOG Practice Bulletin (2009;109). [Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com]

HIV/AIDS advocates in Victoria want authorities to provide clearer policies for determining when criminal charges should be lodged against HIV-positive people who risk infecting others. Though there are national guidelines, a recent review suggests many state policies are unclear about what circumstances trigger a health department’s referral of an HIV-related case to the police, said Mike Kennedy, executive director of the Victoria AIDS Council. “I’m not aware of any Australian state that has any clear guidelines to say how this will happen, so that’s the missing bit from the reviews that were done around the country,” Kennedy said. “Our view is that [protocols] ought to be governed by a set of agreed procedures, not just rely on goodwill and a set of relationships between people in the health department and people in the police service, because those people change.” “If someone goes out and deliberately attempts to infect, or does infect someone with HIV, most people are going to say if it’s deliberate and there’s intent, then that’s criminal,” said Kennedy. “If a slip-up happens, which they do, most people, including a lot of police, are going to say, ‘Well, that’s not criminal,’ but there’s an awful lot of space between the two of those.” The call for clearly stated policies follows the release of a National Association of People Living with HIV/AIDS monograph advocating a halt to the upward trend in HIV-related criminal prosecutions. Since 1993, 22 such prosecutions have gone forward in Australia, with half occurring since 2007. [Article source: http://www.starobserver.com.au]

Using federal stimulus funds, the National Institutes of Health has awarded $1 million grants to two HIV studies that will be conducted by University of California-San Francisco researchers. The first study will examine mobile phone text-messaging to improve treatment adherence among HIV patients who face complex regimens. More than 250 participants from San Francisco General Hospital’s Positive Health Program will be involved, said Dr. James S. Kahn, a professor of clinical medicine in the UCSF program. The method has been tried before, “but not for our patients, who are on the opposite side of the digital divide and who don’t have as many resources as other persons receiving health care,” Kahn said. “We’ll know whether this is useful or not within two years.” The second study will test the feasibility and acceptability of a self-administered, Web-based drug and alcohol intervention to improve HIV treatment adherence and prevent transmission. The strategy involves patients screening for drug and alcohol use, a brief intervention and referral for treatment (SBIRT). In one SBIRT group, patients will be able to access information securely online from their own medical records. This will be compared with a provider-administered protocol during clinic appointments. “We are hoping to find out whether patients are more open to responding to sensitive topics with a self-administered, Web-based approach than they are talking directly with their clinician,” said Carol Dawson-Rose, an associate nursing professor at UCSF’s Center for AIDS Prevention Studies. [Article source: http://ebar.com]

Citing data from its latest survey, the South African Institute of Race Relations reports that 32 percent of all children in the nation will have lost one or both parents to AIDS by 2015. The SAIRR report says that in 2007, 2.5 million children had lost one or both parents, and AIDS was the cause of more than half these deaths. By 2007, 701,000 children had lost both parents, almost twice the number without parents in 2002. During the same period, the number of children living in child-headed households increased from 118,000 to 148,000. “Vulnerable children need additional support that is not necessarily monetary in nature, as these children have lost their primary caregiver,” said Gail Eddy of SAIRR. [Article source: http://www.bday.co.za]

On Thursday in Manhattan, about 40 people gathered at Uganda’s UN mission to protest that nation’s proposed new anti-homosexuality law. The United States and France have condemned the measure, which would impose the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality,” including acts by persons who are HIV-positive. “It’s unimaginable. You’re talking about the death penalty for an entire class of human beings,” said Brendan Fay, a filmmaker. “It’s incredible that in 2009 a nation’s parliament is considering this.” Earlier this month, Ugandan legislator David Bahati was unmoved by the furor against the bill. “The fact that the moral fabric of America and Europe has been put under siege by the supporters of this creeping evil of homosexuality should not suggest that we follow suit,” Bahati said. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission organized the protest. [Article source: http://www.afp.com/english/home/ ]

On World AIDS Day, Dec. 1, the AIDS Activities Office at Lehigh Valley Health Network and the Allentown Health Bureau will present a conference entitled, “HIV: The Aging of a Growing Population.” The keynote address will be delivered by Jane Fowler, who was diagnosed with HIV at age 55. She is the founder and director of HIV Wisdom for Older Women and has served as national coordinator for the National Association of HIV over 50. The conference, which is approved for continuing education credits, is open to all HIV agencies and caregivers. The $25 advance fee includes breakfast and lunch. For more information, telephone 610-969-2400 or e-mail aao.hcc@LVH.com. [Article source: http://www.poconorecord.com]

Students at the University of South Carolina (USC) are using World AIDS Day to elevate the profile of sexual health on campus. “We want to keep students, our campus, and the community alert and not condone risky behaviors,” said Ebony Allen, SHARE’s World AIDS Day coordinator. USC’s student sexual health awareness activities, which uses the acronym SHARE, hands out about 15,000 condoms every year along with printed material on safe-sex practices. In addition to World AIDS Day events, SHARE launched a campaign in October that focused on domestic violence awareness and in the spring of 2010 will put on “Project Condom.” Wilson called attention to the disproportionate effect of HIV/AIDS among South Carolina’s African-American community. While African Americans comprise one-third of South Carolina’s population, they account for seven of every 10 newly diagnosed cases of HIV. Some other sexual health statistics advanced by SHARE include the following: *South Carolina ranks eighth in the nation for new cases of AIDS. *People under the age of 25 account for one in five of every newly diagnosed cases of HIV. *Every year, South Carolina reports 775 new cases of HIV. *Among females, African Americans account for eight of every 10 newly diagnosed cases of HIV/AIDS in South Carolina. [Article source: http://www.dailygamecock.com/]

The global recession is a concern but does not threaten the Obama administration’s commitment to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), US officials said Wednesday. Both the president and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton have assured that PEPFAR remains one of “the highest priorities,” said Eric Goosby, who heads PEPFAR at the State Department. In South Africa, PEPFAR’s budget will actually be increased from $550 million this fiscal year to $560 million in FY 2010-11, said Mary Fanning, head of health programs at the US Embassy in Pretoria. The United States is getting prepared to help South Africa’s new government achieve its goal of offering antiretroviral (ARV) therapy to 80 percent of patients in need by 2011, she said. The US government is enjoying a new era of cooperation with South Africa, which earlier this year elected President Jacob Zuma, said Goosby. Zuma and his health minister, Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi, have bluntly rejected the policies of South Africa’s previous government. Former President Thabo Mbeki publicly doubted that HIV causes AIDS, while his health minister endorsed nutritional supplements instead of ARVs as treatment. Next year, 5 percent of PEPFAR’s budget for the country will be left for the new government to allocate as it sees fit - an unprecedented move, Fanning said. “We are very gratified to be able to partner with the Zuma administration in a much more robust manner,” Goosby said. [Article source: http://www.ap.org/ ]

Toronto’s new text-messaging program, “TOHealth,” is one among many initiatives that use texting- and Web-based services to provide sexual health information to teens. On the Web, Seattle-based Scarleteen.com recently began a texting service for its 10,000 US visitors a day, and there are tentative plans to make it available in Canada, where about 1,250 Web visitors use the site daily. “Texting is just huge with teenagers,” said Heather Corinna, founder of Scarleteen. The site is run by 15 trained volunteers, many of whom study in health-related fields, Corinna said. “Some of the questions are really immediate,” said Corinna. “Somebody who used a condom for sex and had a condom break, and asks you what to do and didn’t know about emergency contraception, you can tell them about it really, really quickly. It’s good to be able to help them like that in real time.” The Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Campaign of North Carolina debuted a texting service in February called the “Birds and Bees Text Line.” Toronto’s program does not offer the personalized responses of BBTL, but there are plans to add this feature. Currently, by texting “TOHealth” to the number 365247, youths in Toronto can receive free automated sexual health information and referrals. “We’re trying to get out there and get the information to them in a way that seems very private and personal,” said Michelle Hamilton-Page, project leader of TOHealth. [Article source: http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal]

Thai employers’ attitudes toward workers with HIV/AIDS have improved in the past decade, a new study suggests. However, these employees still remain less likely to be promoted. “Employers reason that if an employee living with HIV/AIDS is promoted, they have to shoulder more responsibilities and this could cause their health to deteriorate,” said Dr. Busaya Virakul, an associate professor and a researcher at the National Institute of Development Administration. She conducted the study and presented its findings recently during a media training organized by the Thailand Business Coalition on AIDS. Busaya said her survey of companies listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand found that the proportion of businesses with a policy on HIV/AIDS in the workplace rose from 6.7 percent in 1997 to 11 percent in 2008. It was commonplace 10 years ago, Busaya said, for employers to require applicants to answer health questions and undergo a blood test. Many businesses rejected candidates living with HIV. Now, Busaya said, most companies view HIV infection as a private matter, and they provide positive workers with the same welfare and medical benefits afforded those with cancer or heart disease. The Health Ministry projects that more than 11,750 Thais will become infected with HIV this year. Of the estimated 1 million residents believed to have contracted HIV, 550,000 are still living. [Article source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com]

The latest data show that STD rates declined slightly last year in Douglas County but remained above national averages. The county’s chlamydia rate dropped from 553.5 cases per 100,000 to 542.6 last year. The national prevalence rate for chlamydia is 401.3 cases per 100,000. The county’s gonorrhea rate fell from 185.1 cases per 100,000 to 181.2. Nationally, gonorrhea prevalence is 111.6 cases per 100,000. Dr. Adi Pour, director of the Douglas County Health Department, said the high rates are a cause for concern and are due in part to teens’ poor understanding of STDs. After declaring an epidemic of STDs in 2004, Douglas County health officials took several steps to reign in the infections, offering testing in non-clinical settings and running ads in the media, including school newspapers. [Article source: http://www.omaha.com]

South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control will mark World AIDS Day on Dec. 1 by offering free or low-cost rapid HIV tests in many county health centers and community agencies. Some 14,000 state residents are known to be living with HIV/AIDS, and health officials estimate that another South Carolinian becomes infected every nine hours. “Early diagnosis can link people to services that will help them stay healthy longer, benefit from treatment, reduce costly hospital visits, and help prevent transmission to others,” said Dr. Wayne Duffus, medical director of DHEC’s STD/HIV Division. Special events and candlelight vigils are planned as well. For more information, telephone 800-322-24237. [Article source: http://www.thestate.com/]

St. Louis ranked second-highest in the number of reported cases of gonorrhea and chlamydia per 100,000 population last year, compared to other US cities and counties, a new CDC report shows. For the past two years, the city ranked first for both diseases, and it ranked in the top five for the last decade. In 2008, the city had nearly 4,300 cases of chlamydia and 1,890 gonorrhea reports, down by about 500 cases from 2007. That meant that St. Louis had 538.8 gonorrhea cases per 100,000 population, slipping below Richmond, Va., and 1,225.3 chlamydia cases per 100,000, just below Baltimore. About two-thirds of STD cases in St. Louis are among persons ages 15-24. Health officials estimate that fewer than half of those who have gonorrhea and chlamydia are diagnosed and treated. The city’s recent education and screening programs have helped push down reported cases of the diseases, said Pamela Walker, interim director of the health department. Public health educators offer STD screening and education weekly at the city’s Juvenile Detention Center, and the health department has made screenings more accessible by offering them at fairs and other community events. “There’s no acceptable level of STDs, especially among our youth,” Walker said. “We really need to keep getting the word out. I think this is a reminder for parents to have their annual conversation with their teen about the dangers of STDs.” [Article source: http://home.post-dispatch.com/]

During an appearance at his foundation’s annual fundraiser in New York City on Monday, Sir Elton John said he worries that young people are not taking seriously the threat of HIV infection. “We are finding that too many young people are not listening to what we are saying,” he told BBC Radio 1’s “Newsbeat.” “I’m afraid people do get a little complacent about the disease by going out and having unsafe sex.” It was John’s first public appearance since falling ill with the flu and an E. coli infection. At the gala, the Elton John AIDS Foundation honored former President Bill Clinton and actress Sharon Stone for their AIDS-fighting efforts. [Article source: http://www.advocate.com/ ]

Spelman College’s Sisters Chapel will host a presentation Thursday by Mica Shaw, coordinator of Sister Soul, an AID Atlanta outreach targeting African-American women. Following Shaw’s 11 a.m. talk, free HIV testing will be offered from 4 to 7 p.m. in Upper Manley. Wrapping up the day will be a “dialogue in the dark,” at which students can discuss HIV and other issues related to sexual health from 8 to 11 p.m. in the Living Learning Center II Auditorium. The events are part of Spelman’s commemoration of World AIDS Day, which is observed on Dec. 1. [Article source: http://www.ajc.com]

D.C. Council member David Catania (I-At Large) on Monday gave city health officials 24 hours to gather AIDS spending documentation sought by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development. Since June, HUD has been requesting a program audit and other information from the city’s HIV/AIDS Administration (HAA). Last week, following a series of Washington Post articles critical of the District’s handling of federal AIDS funds, HUD Assistant Secretary Mercedes M. Marquez said the agency will withhold more than $12 million from the city if the problems are not fixed. “It does not seem to me that it should be that difficult to provide them with information they asked for when they asked for it,” said Catania. Catania told HAA Director Shannon Hader and Health Department Director Pierre Vigilance that he will compel them to appear at hearings every Friday, except Thanksgiving and Christmas, to address the concerns. The Post’s articles alleged fraud and waste in housing spending at HAA, which the paper said paid more than $25 million to nonprofit groups that failed to provide promised services. “I hope to have an exhaustive list of every HUD concern, and we will go over them item by item,” said Catania, who chairs the council’s health committee. Vigilance and Hader agreed to comply. Catania said he has tentatively scheduled a meeting Wednesday morning with Marquez and District health officials. “We are confident that we will be able to resolve any remaining issues to ensure continued funding” of the housing program for people with AIDS, Hader said. [Article source: http://www.washingtonpost.com]

A common cold virus used in an experimental HIV vaccine may have been an inappropriate vehicle for stimulating immune cells to fight HIV, a new study suggests. In 2007, researchers halted the STEP trial after it appeared that volunteers who received Merck & Co.’s vaccine candidate were more likely to later contract HIV. The adenovirus serotype 5 (Ad5) was used as a vector to carry genetic HIV material that researchers hoped would prompt an immune response to prevent HIV’s spread. Because adenovirus is a common cold virus, many people have been previously exposed to it, including some STEP trial participants. In the new study, investigators proposed that increased HIV infection rates among Ad5-seropositive vaccine recipients “was due to activation and expansion of Ad5-specific mucosal-homing memory CD4 T cells.” In these individuals, mucous membranes could have produced large numbers of CD4 cells, providing HIV with an abundance of the very cells the virus infects. “Our research would suggest a cautious approach for the future development of adenovirus vector vaccines for use in areas of high HIV prevalence, or in individuals whose lifestyles meant that they were at higher risk of HIV infection,” said Steven Patterson, the study’s lead author. “If our hypothesis is correct, then the use of an adenovirus vaccine against any disease in an area of high HIV prevalence may increase risk of HIV infection,” Patterson said. On the other hand, “there are scientists in the HIV vaccine field who do not believe that the adenovirus was the reason for increased number of infections in the vaccinated group.” “It would be premature to suggest that this provides an explanation for the STEP results, and the implications for other vaccines or gene therapy are unclear,” Dr. Michael Robertson, director of Infectious Diseases/Vaccines Clinical Research at Merck, said through a spokesperson. The full study, “Adenovirus Vector Vaccination Induces Expansion of Memory CD4 T Cells with a Mucosal Homing Phenotype that Are Readily Susceptible to HIV-1,” was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2009;doi: 10.1073/pnas.0907898106). [Article source: http://www.ap.org/ ]

Effective Dec. 14, immigrant females ages 11-26 will no longer be required to be vaccinated against human papillomavirus (HPV) to become legal permanent US residents. Since July 2008, these women and girls had to obtain at least the first dose of the vaccine before their immigration status could be changed. However, CDC on Friday adopted new criteria for determining which shots are required, excluding those that do not protect against diseases outbreaks. In addition to dropping HPV shots from green-card requirements, the revised policy change means the herpes zoster vaccine to prevent shingles will no longer be required for immigrants age 60 or older. “They are not easily transmissible,” explained Dr. Katrin Kohl, deputy director of CDC’s division of global migration and quarantine. “They don’t fit into the whole public health spirit of outbreak prevention.” “More than half of the immigrants who come to the US seeking opportunity are women,” said Silvia Henriquez, executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health. “We thank the CDC for restoring their dignity and reproductive justice.” Priced at $400-$1,000 for the three-dose series, the HPV vaccine added a significant financial burden for applicants already facing thousands of dollars in expenses for application fees and mandatory medical exams. Insurance companies do not cover health services required for immigration, advocates say. Other criteria CDC will use in determining green-card requirements include that the vaccine must protect against a disease with the potential to cause an outbreak, has been eliminated in the United States, or is in the process of being eliminated. [Article source: http://www.ap.org/ ]