t is very important that everyone understands I that a person can be infected with the AIDS virus without showing any symptoms at all. It is possible to be infected for years, feel fine, look fine and have no way of knowing you are infected unless you have a test for the AIDS virus. During this period, however, people infected with the AIDS virus can pass the virus to sexual partners, to people with whom drug needles are shared, and to children before or during birth. That is one of the most disturbing things about AIDS. Once symptoms do appear, they are similar to the symptoms of some other diseases. As the disease progresses, they become more serious. That is because the AIDS virus keeps your body's natural defenses from operating correctly. If you are concerned whether you might be infected, consider your own behavior and its effects on others. If you feel you need to be tested for the AIDS virus, talk to a doctor or an AIDS counselor for more information. (See below.) Y Should You Get An AIDS Test? ou have probably heard about the "AIDS Test." The test doesn't actually tell you if you have AIDS. It shows if you have been infected with the virus. It looks for changes in blood that occur after you have been infected. The Public Health Service recommends you be confidentially counseled and tested if you have had any sexually transmitted disease or shared needles; if you are a man who has had sex with another man; or if you have had sex with a prostitute, male or female. You should be tested if you have had sex with anyone who has done any of these things. If you are a woman who has been engaging in risky behavior (see page 3), and you plan to have a baby or are not using birth control, you should be tested. have received a blood transfusion between If you test positive, and find you have been infected with the AIDS virus, you must take steps to protect your partner. People who have always practiced safe behavior (see page 3) do not need to be tested. There's been a great deal in the press about problems with the test. It is very reliable if it is done by a good laboratory and the results are checked by a physician or counselor. If you have engaged in risky behavior, speak frankly to a doctor who understands the AIDS problem, or to an AIDS counselor. For more information, call your local public health agency. They're listed in the government section of your phone book. Or, call your local AIDS hotline. If you can't find the number, call 1-800-342-AIDS. AMERICA RESPONDS TO AIDS Your doctor may advise you to be counseled and tested if you are a hemophiliac, or 5 needles and syringes by those who shoot drugs is the fastest growing way that the virus is being spread. No one should shoot drugs. It can result in addiction, poor health, family disruption, emotional disturbances and death. Many drug users are addicted and need to enter a drug treatment program as quickly as possible. In the meantime, these people must avoid AIDS by not sharing any of the equipment used to prepare and inject illegal drugs. Sharing drug needles, even once, is an extremely easy way to be infected with the AIDS virus. Blood from an infected person can be trapped in the needle or syringe, and then injected directly into the bloodstream of the next person who uses the needle. Other kinds of drugs, including alcohol, can also cause problems. Under their influence, your judgment becomes impaired. You could be exposed to the AIDS virus while doing things you wouldn't otherwise do. Teenagers are at an age when trying different things is especially inviting. They must understand how serious the drug problem is and how to avoid it. Drugs are also one of the main ways in which prostitutes become infected. They may share needles themselves or have sex with people who do. They then can pass the AIDS virus to others. For information about drug abuse treatment programs, contact your physician, local public health agency or community AIDS or drug assistance group. C Talking With Kids About AIDS hildren hear about AIDS, just as we all do. But they don't understand it, so they become frightened. They are worried they or their friends might get sick and die. Children need to be told they can't get AIDS from everyday contact in the classroom, cafeteria or bathrooms. They don't have to worry about getting AIDS even if one of their schoolmates is infected. Basic health education should be started as carly as possible, in keeping with parental and community standards. Local schools have the responsibility to see that their students know the facts about AIDS. It is very important that middle school students - those entering their teens learn to protect themselves from the AIDS virus. Children must also be taught values and responsibility, as well as skills to help them resist peer pressure that might lead to risky behavior. These skills can be reinforced by religious and community groups. However, final responsibility rests with the parents. As a parent, you should read and discuss this brochure with your children. AMERICA RESPONDS TO AIDS Helping A Person With AIDS are one of the growing number of people who know someone who is infected, you need to have a special understanding of the problem. No one will require more support and more love than your friend with AIDS. Feel free to offer what you can, without fear of becoming infected. Don't worry about getting AIDS from everyday contact with a person with AIDS. You need to take precautions such as wearing rubber gloves only when blood is present. If you don't know anyone with AIDS, but you'd still like to offer a helping hand, become a volunteer. You can be sure your help will be appreciated by a person with AIDS. This might mean dropping by the supermarket to pick up groceries, sitting with the person a while, or just being there to talk. You may even want to enroll in a support group for caregivers. These are available around the country. If you are interested, contact any local AIDS-related organization. Above all, keep an upbeat attitude. It will help you and everyone face the disease more comfortably. "If you want more informa- -James O. Mason, M.D. 4. You can't tell by looking that someone has the Do You Know Enough AIDS virus. I It's important for each of us to share what we know about AIDS with family members and others we love. Knowledge and understanding are the best weapons we have against the disease. Check the boxes. Answers below. True False 5. If you think you've been exposed to the AIDS virus, you should get an AIDS test. True False 1. True. It is risky behavior that puts you at risk for AIDS, regardless of any "group" you belong to. See page 2. 2. A & B. The AIDS virus is not spread by insects, 3. True. However, the most effective preventive 5. True. You should be counseled about getting an 6. True. You won't get AIDS by helping someone who has the disease. See page 7. AMERICA RESPONDS TO AIDS Understanding AIDS What Do You Really Know About Are You At Risk? This brochure has been prepared by the Surgeon General and the Centers for Disease Control, Epidemiologic Notes and Reports Human Ehrlichiosis - United States Human infection with Ehrlichia canis or another closely related rickettsia was described in the United States for the first time in 1986 (1). In April of that year, a 51-year-old man developed fever, malaise, myalgia, and headache approximately 12 days after being bitten by ticks while he was planting trees in rural Arkansas. He was hospitalized 5 days after becoming ill. Upon admission to the hospital, the patient had an oral temperature of 39.7 °C (103.5 °F), leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, renal failure, and elevated liver enzymes, but no rash. A presumptive diagnosis of "spotless" Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) was made, and the patient was treated with chloramphenicol and, later, with doxycycline. Cytoplasmic inclusions were observed in peripheral lymphocytes, neutrophils, and monocytes on the seventh day of illness. His illness was complicated (Continued on page 275) TABLE II. Notifiable diseases of low frequency, United States *Because AIDS cases are not received weekly from all reporting areas, comparison of weekly figures may be misleading. There were no imported measles cases this week. |