Newsbriefs Medical News ----------------------------------------------------------------- Care, not social factors, key to AIDS survival Access to good medical care is more important than sex, race, injection-drug use or socioeconomic status in determining how soon individuals infected with HIV will develop AIDS, and how long they will survive, according to a Hopkins study. The finding contradicts several previous studies suggesting that demographic factors, such as sex and race, may determine how well a person responds to treatment for HIV infection or AIDS. The results were published in the Sept. 21 issue of "The New England Journal of Medicine." The study, directed by Richard E. Chaisson, associate professor of medicine and director of the Hopkins AIDS Service, found that regardless of demographic factors, patients were more likely to die if the level of immune system cells called CD4 lymphocytes was below 200 (the normal level is about 1,000) or if they had symptoms of AIDS at the beginning of the study. People who took AZT or received preventive therapy for Pneumocystis pneumonia, a disease that commonly strikes people with AIDS, tended to live longer than those who did not receive such treatment. However, those patients who had already taken AZT before they enrolled in the Hopkins clinic did not survive as long as those who began the drug after enrolling in the study. "This difference reflects the fact that AZT's beneficial effect is time-limited," said Chaisson. "AZT benefits patients only for a year or two. Patients who had begun taking AZT before they entered our study had already enjoyed the benefits of the drug for some time. Those who began AZT therapy at the start of our study had more time during the study to benefit from the drug," he said. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- Home HIV test found to be reliable, effective Hopkins researchers have shown that a home test kit for HIV infection that requires individuals to obtain a small sample of their own blood is accurate and reliable. "Our findings are important," said Judith Feinberg, associate professor of medicine, because the future availability of such a kit may provide privacy to people who might otherwise not get themselves tested. And availability of the home test kit may encourage people who have limited access to health care to be tested," she said. In order to provide a sample for the home test, called a dried blood spot test, individuals pricked a fingertip with a sterile lancet and put a drop of blood on a small piece of blotting paper. The kit was then sent by mail to a laboratory to test for evidence of HIV. Eighty-five percent of the blood spots were adequate to provide a test result. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Other News ----------------------------------------------------------------- ERC expands hours at Eisenhower Library The Electronic Resources Center, located on the A-Level of the Milton S. Eisenhower Library on the Homewood campus, has expanded its hours and services. The center now will be open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Fridays, 1 to 8 p.m. on Saturdays and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sundays. The ERC offers primary access to full-text and image data bases in philosophy, literature, drama, classics, history, contemporary culture and art, as well as to bibliographic data bases in science and the social sciences that are available on the library network. Telnet access to sites on the World Wide Web is also available; however, the ERC cannot be used for word processing or e-mail. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- HAC, MSEL sponsoring Internet Fair in October The Milton S. Eisenhower Library and Homewood Academic Computing are sponsoring an Internet/Information Fair, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Oct. 3 to 5 in the library's Electronic Resources Center. Those attending can learn how to surf the Internet for a wide range of interesting and usable Web sites, how to set up an Internet account, how to FTP, how to use EndNote (a personal information management system) and how to access data bases both on the Internet and in the library. Computing specialists for various academic disciplines will join resource services librarians to walk participants through the electronic offerings and to answer questions. There is no cost to attend, and no appointment is necessary. For more information, call Karla Pearce at (410) 516-4153. ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- Women's Board to hold 31st Best Dressed Sale A Hopkins tradition for 31 years, the Best Dressed Sale and Boutique fund-raising event will be held this year from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sept. 28 and 29 and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sept. 30 at the Evergreen Carriage House, 4545 N. Charles St. Surprise specials will be held on the first two days, and everything will be half-price on the last day. The sale, sponsored by the Johns Hopkins Women's Board, features "gently used" clothing and accessories for women, men and children including furs, evening gowns, tuxedos, suits, sports coats, ties, shoes, casual wear, lingerie and maternity wear. "Imagine buying Chanels, Louis Ferrauds, Ungaros, Escadas and Fabrakants at a fraction of their original price," said the sale's co-chair, Mary J. Moses. "It's a shopper's delight." The Hopkins Women's Board holds a wide range of events throughout the year, raising money for patient-care programs at the hospital. Last year's sale raised $115,000. The board has pledged $1 million to the new cancer center. -----------------------------------------------------------------