Drug-resistant HIV alarms NY health officials

A rare strain of HIV that is highly resistant to virtually all anti-retroviral drugs and appears to lead to the rapid onset of AIDS was dete...

A rare strain of HIV that is highly resistant to virtually all anti-retroviral drugs and appears to lead to the rapid onset of AIDS was detected in a New York City man last week, city health officials said on Friday.

It was the first time a strain of HIV had been found, that showed resistance to multiple drugs and led to AIDS so fast, the officials said. While the extent of the spread of the disease is unknown, officials called a news conference to say the situation was alarming.

“We consider this a major potential problem,” said Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The department issued an alert to all hospitals and doctors in the city.

The virus was found in a New York City man in his mid-40s who engaged in unprotected anal sex with other men on multiple occasions while he was using crystal methamphetamine, a stimulating drug.

Some AIDS specialists around the country expressed scepticism about the alarm, believing that it might be an isolated case. But Dr Frieden said the case was a “wake-up call”.

“What’s unique about this is the combination of multiple drug resistance and a rapid course,” said Dr Ronald O. Valdiserri, Centers for Disease Control.

Dr David Ho, who did the testing that identified the strain, described the convergence of the two problems as “a scary phenomenon”.

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The primary investigation in this case shows that the patient could have developed AIDS in as quickly as two months. On an average, it takes 10 years from the time a person is first infected with HIV to the development of AIDS. —NYT