Conference coverage

Fatty liver disease found to be very common in both younger and older people living with HIV according to cohort study in diverse population

  [Lance Sherriff assisted in the transcription and compilation of this article.] Fatty liver disease (hepatic steatosis) was found to be very common among people living with HIV in a cross-sectional study involving 160 people on antiretroviral treatment, according to data presented at the 9th International HIV and Aging Workshop last week in New York …

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Even newer NRTIs (anti-HIV drugs) found to cause mitochondrial damage in muscle

[Lance Sherriff assisted in the transcription and compilation of this article.] Mitochondria (the small organelles in cells that are critical for energy production) within the muscle fibers of antiretroviral-treated people living with HIV may be significantly damaged, according to a study presented last week in New York at the HIV and Aging Workshop by researchers …

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The high risk of frailty in middle-aged people living with HIV

  Frailty, the condition of depleted energy and physiological decline that is often seen in the elderly and that makes them less capable of recovering from illness, accidents and the stresses of life, has been reported to be significantly more common in people living with HIV — even in middle-aged people on antiretroviral treatment (ART) …

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TB2016: The HIV and TB communities’ causes are inextricably linked: Success happens together

TB2016 was a two-day conference dedicated exclusively to TB that immediately preceded the 21st International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2016) in Durban, South Africa. It convened TB implementers, TB scientists, infectious disease clinicians and scientists, health policy makers, and advocacy — but was held in conjunction with AIDS2016 in the hope that it would attract many …

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AIDS 2016: Bringing treatment programmes to scale in Africa

In the last 16 years, countries in sub-Saharan Africa have created the largest treatment programs in the world; their activists negotiated access and prices globally in its courts; and their implementers have provided the innovations in delivery to ensure coverage at community level.  This is not just reflected in treatment numbers (10.7 million) but in …

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The use of convalescent plasma or serum

Over the summer, an international network of blood regulators developed a physician’s paper for regulators, and for anyone who might wish to become involved, outlining the reasons to consider antibodies derived from blood or convalescent plasma, or ultimately, hyperimmune globulins as a potential therapy in a filovirus outbreak. They provided an assessment of the previous …

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Ebola vaccines in development

  The following table includes the leading candidates, however a number of these are not yet ready for a phase-1 trial but may be coming into trial over the next three to six months, and some are slightly longer term. Vaccine Manufacturers (developers): Vaccine details: Testing timeline: ChAd3-ZEBOV GlaxoSmithKline (National Institutes of Health (NIH) Chimpanzee …

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Experimental therapies being evaluated to treat Ebola

Experimental therapies for Ebola include new compounds, as well as existing drugs approved for other purposes which demonstrate activity in laboratory models and which potentially could be repurposed. At least something is known about the approved drug’s safety profile, though the doses used for Ebola may not be the same. Each of the following potential …

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WHO’s Comprehensive Plan to Rapidly Develop Therapeutics and Vaccines

Despite research into Ebola vaccines and therapeutics over the past decade, no product has been fully evaluated and approved for human use. This means that the only way to deal with this unprecedented outbreak has been to use the same basic public health and supportive care measures that were available in the past. Having an …

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Lessons learned in the ‘Hot Zone’

“The most difficult part for a clinician is when you don’t know if the patient has Ebola or not,” said Dr. Frederique Jacquerioz at the recent American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene Meeting in New Orleans. Despite the title of her presentation ‘from the ‘Hot Zone’: A Clinician’s Perspective on Confronting Ebola Virus in …

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