European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 13, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 8 the stars and stripes wednesday november 13, 1985 los i n --.�.-. 5-,--.--health & science hey a Here Are important facts about aids recent a eve of menus cause a Arm among military health officials by Chi c k Vinci Washington Bureau Washington at first it was the Gay disease something that attacked Only  then intravenous drug users began contracting it in increasing numbers. Today five years after aids first appeared there ii evidence in is slowly spreading to the general population partly by Way of prostitutes. In is that last piece of news that is most alarming to military health officials. Since prostitutes arc often intravenous drug users they arc prime candidates to spread acquired immune deficiency syndrome to heterosexuals. Almost one third of a sampling of 80 males Wilh aids who were outside the few Well defined High risk groups admitted having sex Wilh prostitutes. Aids Ori Gin studies of american  by the Walter Reed army Institute of research also Point to prostitutes. A Harvard researcher has said that about 20 percent of prostitutes in Germany carry the aids virus. Ger Many has the highest concentration of american troops outside inc United states. According to a defense department study a random sampling of 1,000 scr Viccar embers in Berlin last summer turned up 52 5.2 percent who tested positive for the a ids virus. While the number of cases in Europe is increasing the far East has been Only lightly affected so far. More than 14,000 cases have been reported in the United Stales. Aids has also been reported in Canada in 18 european countries in at least 21 african coun tries and to � lesser extent in almost Aii other Peris of world. In is almost invariably fatal. Half of those who have contracted the disease Are dead and the rest arc dying. There is no known cure. But health officials say thai much of the paranoia associated Wilh aids the kind of fear that has led to Boycotts of schools thai admit students infected with the virus is a result of a Lack of Good information. According to the new York stale department of health there is no evidence to indicate that you can gel a ids by o coming in casual Contact with someone who has it. That includes handshaking bumping together in a crowd or even casual kissing. Living in a House Wilh or working with someone who has aids. Touching Obj cos used by someone who has aids. Aids is nol easily communicated. In can t be transmitted through , coughing or eating or drinking from common ulc nails. Nor is it readily transmitted by Way of Public toilets or drinking fountains because the virus does not survive Long outside the human body. Aids is transmitted exclusively through sexual con tact sharing of Needles or blood transfusions the experts say. Direct blood to blood or semen to blood con acl seems to be necessary to transmit it. Although in arc is much Hal researchers still Don l know about the syndrome it is known that aids attacks the body s natural immune system. When that system fails patients Are vulnerable to a number of unusual diseases. One source of confusion Aboul aids is inc virus closely linked to it known As human to Lymph Tropic virus . Because someone is infected with the Htlv-111 virus docs not mean that person will contract aids. Aids u the most virulent stage of infection with a Tiv Iii. Studies have shown that most persons infected with Hilvi remain healthy. According to the depart ment of health and human services there Are More Titan 14,000 cases of aids in the United states and there Are anywhere from 600,000 to 1.2 million Ameri cans carrying the virus. About 5 percent to 20 percent of those cases will Progress to aids according to official estimates. The time Between infection with a Tiv Iii and the Onset of aids symptoms can vary from six months to five years and beyond. Scientists arc trying to determine exactly what makes the a Tiv ii virus explode Imo aids. The disease has reached epidemic proportions among homosexual men. Who make up 7j percent of the aids victims in the United states. Homosexuals Are particularly at risk because of their lifestyle which can include casual sex with multiple partners. The second largest group affected by aids is present or past abusers of intravenous drugs. Because in drug users Oflyn share Needles someone with a Tiv Iii can pass the virus to someone else via a few drops of infected blood left on the Needle. Drug users make up 17 percent of a ids cases. Another 3 percent get aids through transfusion of contaminated blood although that number has been de creasing since mandatory screening of All blood donations for the virus was begun in the United states last May. Screening of blood donations is not carried out in All countries that have reported cases of a Tiv Iii. About i percent of aids cases Are children who a Parmly were infected by their mothers before or during birth. Another i percent of the cases result from Hetero sexual Contact with an infected person. The remaining 5 percent Don t fit the other calories but evidence suggests they were transmitted in similar ways. There is no Way to determine whether a person will develop aids. There is a test for detecting antibodies substances produced in the blood to fight diseases to the a Tiv Iii virus. Presence of the antibodies Means that a person in been infected with the virus but it does t Tell whether the person is still infected or if the person has or will develop aids. Certain drugs have been discovered that slow the action of a Tiv Iii but they Don l Lead to improvement. Work on vaccines is hampered by the fact that the a Tiv Iii virus can rapidly mutate itself into other forms. While the quest for cures and vaccines to fight the disease is being vigorously pursued treatment is being directed at the disorders that strike aids patients As a result of their damaged immune systems. For the moment All aids victims can do is wait and Hope. To movie spurs Calls to stations hot lines by the associated press hundreds of callers curious about aids telephoned to stations and special hoi lines across the nation monday night following the network broadcast of the movie an Early Frost Aboul a family torn apart when the homosexual son devel Ops the deadly disease. The phones have been ringing since we started said Ethyl Porter Community re lations director for Kyrc to in Houston. She did t have an exact number of callers but estimated them at about 900. Most of our callers want to know the basics about inc disease. A lot want to get information Aboul blood transfusions and Early symptoms Porter said. Twenty doctors manned the to station s hot line and they were Kepi Busy answering Calls. Abc estimated an audience of about 50 million viewers for the made for to movie. About 97 Calls were logged at Abc Headquarters in new York a Small response by network  said spokesman mall Messina. All but 10 of the Calls were favourable he said. They were impressed with the Way inc subject was handled the acting and they wanted to Sec it again Messina said. Some people asked if it was available on a videocassette. They seemed to be impressed with the Way the problem was presented. Those who were against the film said basically the same thing the film promoted homosexuality he said. In the movie the aids victim portrayed by Aidan Quinn is initially rejected by his father played by Ben Gazzara. The Mother played by Gena Rowlands acts As an inter mediary As the family comes to grips with inc Iwin revelations of the son s homosexuality and his disease. Calls also came in to various hot lines set up to provide information about acquired immune deficiency syndrome. Mostly they re concerned Wilh the trans Mission of the disease said Michael Bill Hymer spokesman for the health crisis network in Miami. One woman called and said she had pneumonia. She wanted to know if she had aids because the main character in the film also suffered from pneumonia said Sally Dodds executive director of the health crisis net work. What we re trying to do Here is screen them keep the lines open and give them Basic information said Dodds who expected to keep their iwo phone lines open until 2  she expected to get More Calls tuesday. An aids hot line operated by Howard Brown memorial clinic in Chicago logged More than twice Ai Many Calls during inc broadcast As on a usual night said its director Michael Scully. Scully said the hot line gets 12 to 14 Calls Between 7 and 10 . On a typical night Buth received about 40 monday night. He said callers responded positively to the program Wilh some wanting to find out More about aids or asking question about specific symptoms. Others offered to work As volunteers in the clinic s pro Gram for aids patients. Scully gave the program High Marks. He said in gave him a new perspective in working on the hot line. In terms of identifying Wilh the people int i Lalk to before it was sympathy bul now n s More like empathy he said. It s More of a reality