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Biomedical subjects

W Winkelstein

Publications and source records attributed to W Winkelstein.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Population-based estimates of zidovudine and aerosol pentamidine use in San Francisco: 1987-1989.

From the San Francisco Men's Health Study (SFMHS) and the San Francisco General Hospital Cohort we derived partially population-based estimates of zidovudine (ZDV) use in San Francisco from 1987 to 1989. Data from the SFMHS alone were used to make estimates of aerosol pentamidine (AP) use in 1989. From 1987 to 1989, zidovudine use increased from 36 to 68% in participants with AIDS. In participants with symptomatic HIV infection without AIDS and in those with less than 200 CD4 cells, ZDV use increased initially but then leveled off (from 6 to 25% and 24 to 55%, respectively). Zidovudine use with more than 500 CD4 cells increased from 0.5 to 4%. In 1989 AP use with less than 200 CD4 cells was 42% and with AIDS was 44%. Whereas 50% of participants with AIDS and less than 200 CD4 were using both ZDV and AP, only 14% of those without AIDS but with less than 200 CD4 cells were using both. Surprisingly few members of these cohorts are using therapies proven effective in reducing the morbidity and mortality of HIV infection.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

An evaluation of the polymerase chain reaction in HIV-1 seronegative men.

The apparent detection of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) DNA by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in seronegative individuals has been the subject of great concern. In this study, 324 seronegative participants in the San Francisco Men's Health Study were evaluated for evidence of infection using a PCR testing algorithm with multiple amplifications targeting different regions of the HIV-1 genome. While most PCR reactions were negative, 8.6% of the specimens showed weak reactivity with one or more primer sets. However, all were negative with at least one primer set and no definitively positive specimens were identified. This study addressed the possibility that some of these PCR reactions might represent latent infection or abortive exposure, leaving residual integrated DNA, rather than false-positive reactions. The frequency of such reactions was determined in homosexual men who have been at risk for HIV-1 infection and in exclusively heterosexual men who have little or no past exposure. The results demonstrate an identical frequency and distribution of equivocal PCR reactions in both populations. Assuming that there is minimal HIV-1 infection among seronegative heterosexual men in San Francisco, we conclude that PCR testing does not provide evidence for a reservoir of occult HIV-1 infection in seronegative homosexual men.

Adult↗

Changes in sexual practices over 5 years of follow-up among heterosexual men in San Francisco.

This report describes changes in sexual behavior of 209 heterosexual men enrolled in a prospective study since 1984. Data were analyzed separately for men who married during the 60 months of follow-up. Study subjects reported fewer total sexual partners and an increase in condom use in the more recent time periods compared to the first period. The proportion of never married men reporting two or more partners in the previous 6 months decreased from 53.2 to 40.7%. All of these men were human immunodeficiency virus seronegative on entry and only one documented seroconversion occurred during the follow-up.

Adult↗

National AIDS incidence trends and the extent of zidovudine therapy in selected demographic and transmission groups.

After mid-1987 fewer than the expected number of cases of AIDS were reported in the United States in some demographic and transmission groups but not in others. Gay men (regardless of intravenous drug use), adults with hemophilia, and transfusion recipients exhibited fewer cases than expected based on previously reliable models. These favorable trends could not be explained by assuming earlier cessation of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. Favorable AIDS incidence trends were not found in heterosexual intravenous drug users or in persons infected through heterosexual contact. White gay men from New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco experienced markedly favorable trends, whereas little changes was observed for nonwhite gay men from nonurban areas. AIDS incidence trends were quantitatively consistent with the fraction of AIDS-free persons with severe immunodeficiency who received zidovudine in three cohorts. Gay men in San Francisco used zidovudine more frequently than did adults with hemophilia, while little was used by intravenous drug users in New York City. Data describing the initial national distribution of zidovudine (March 31-September 18, 1987) indicated relatively high use by patients with severe immunodeficiency in those groups, such as urban white gay men, that subsequently experienced fewer cases of AIDS than expected. Available data suggest that zidovudine, perhaps in combination with other therapies, has been one factor contributing to favorable AIDS incidence trends in some groups. Broader application of therapy might further retard the incidence of AIDS, especially in intravenous drug users, persons infected through heterosexual contact, minorities, women, and persons diagnosed outside major metropolitan areas.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Projections of AIDS morbidity and mortality in San Francisco.

To develop a model for predicting acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) morbidity in San Francisco, Calif, through June 1993, we combined annual human immunodeficiency virus seroconversion rates for homosexual and bisexual men and for heterosexual intravenous drug users with estimates of the cumulative proportion of the population with AIDS by duration of human immunodeficiency virus infection and with estimates of the size of the at-risk populations. We projected AIDS mortality by applying Kaplan-Meier estimates of survival time following diagnosis to the projected number of cases. The median incubation period for AIDS among homosexual and bisexual men infected with the human immunodeficiency virus was estimated to be 11.0 years (mean, 11.8 years; 95% confidence interval, 10.6 to 13.0 years). The model projects 12,349 to 17,022 cumulative cases of AIDS in San Francisco through June 1993, with 9,966 to 12,767 cumulative deaths.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Use of beta 2-microglobulin level and CD4 lymphocyte count to predict development of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome in persons with human immunodeficiency virus infection.

Serum beta 2-microglobulin (beta 2M) levels were measured by radioimmunoassay in 962 unmarried men recruited by probability sampling from areas in San Francisco, Calif, most severely affected by the epidemic of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). From July 1984 to December 1987, 65 incident AIDS cases occurred in 388 homosexual/bisexual men infected by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) at the time of recruitment. The mean level of beta 2M in uninfected individuals at entry was 170 nmol/L. In HIV-seropositive patients who had not developed AIDS, the mean beta 2M level was 254 nmol/L, and in those who had developed AIDS, the beta 2M level was 347 nmol/L. After 36 months of follow-up, 34% of individuals with beta 2M levels greater than 322 nmol/L at entry developed AIDS, 21% of individuals with levels between 246 and 322 nmol/L developed AIDS, while only 7.3% of those with levels below 246 nmol/L developed AIDS. The beta 2M level predicted the development of AIDS independently of the CD4 lymphocyte count in HIV-seropositive individuals. Thus, 65.5% of HIV-seropositive individuals with beta 2M levels above 322 nmol/L and CD4 lymphocyte counts of below 500/microL developed AIDS in 3 years. This represents an 18.4-fold increased relative hazard at 3 years over individuals with beta 2M and CD4 cell counts within the reference range for uninfected individuals. A nomogram is provided that allows the easy calculation of the probability of an HIV-infected person developing AIDS in 36 months depending on prevalent levels of CD4 lymphocytes and serum beta 2M.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

HIV infection, cigarette smoking and CD4+ T-lymphocyte counts: preliminary results from the San Francisco Men's Health Study.

The effect of cigarette smoking on CD4+ T lymphocytes was investigated in the San Francisco Men's Health Study cohort. The cohort was established by probability sampling in 1984 to study infection with HIV. Smoking showed an association with increased CD4+ cell counts in all men but the effect was attenuated in HIV-seropositive men (85 cells/microliter difference in median counts, non-smokers compared with smokers) compared with HIV-seronegative men (230 cells/microliter difference in median counts). The positive dose response between packs smoked per day and CD4+ counts observed in uninfected men was substantially reduced in infected men (slope 87 versus 27 cells/microliter). Analysis of data from HIV seroconverters suggest that smokers' counts fall faster than non-smokers' following infection, and that response to smoking becomes less pronounced soon after infection. This report demonstrates that those who monitor CD4+ cell counts in HIV-infected individuals for clinical and/or research purposes should also consider smoking status.

Adult↗

Patterns of T lymphocyte changes with human immunodeficiency virus infection: from seroconversion to the development of AIDS.

CD4 and CD8 T lymphocytes of three groups of men infected by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) were examined twice yearly for 36 months to elucidate the temporal trends in T lymphocytes during infection. The three groups were 37 HIV seroconverters, 304 prevalent HIV seropositives remaining free of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), and 69 men who developed AIDS during observation. Six months before seroconversion, CD4 levels were similar among HIV seroconverters and 356 seronegative controls. Within 18 months of seroconversion, mean CD4 levels fell to the level of the prevalent seropositives at study entry. From there, the rate of decline slowed. CD8 lymphocyte counts rose dramatically at seroconversion. Among AIDS-free prevalent seropositives, CD4 levels fell steadily over 36 months of observation. By contrast, CD8 cell levels rose slowly. Among men who developed AIDS, mean CD4 levels fell more rapidly again during the 18 months prior to diagnosis. CD8 cell levels remained elevated until 6-12 months before diagnosis, when they began to fall.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

The San Francisco Men's Health Study: continued decline in HIV seroconversion rates among homosexual/bisexual men.

The incidence of infection by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has been monitored since 1984 in an area probability sample of homosexual/bisexual men drawn from a six-kilometer square area of San Francisco where the epidemic of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) has been most severe. Annualized HIV seroconversion rates in previously uninfected cohort members have declined by 88 per cent from 5.9 per cent during the first six months of 1985 to 0.7 per cent during the last six months of 1987. Concurrent declines of approximately 80 per cent in the prevalence of sexual behaviors associated with HIV transmission were also observed in the sample.

AIDS Serodiagnosis↗

Male-to-female transmission of human immunodeficiency virus.

Ninety-seven female sexual partners of 93 men infected with human immunodeficiency virus were studied. All of the women had sexual contact within the year before their partner had been diagnosed as having acquired immunodeficiency syndrome or was found to have a positive reaction on the human immunodeficiency virus serologic test. Fifty-seven percent were the partners of bisexual men. Overall, 23% of the women were infected (95% confidence interval, 15% to 32%). The total number of exposures to the index case (sexual contacts with ejaculation) and the specific practice of anal intercourse, also with the infected partner, were associated with transmission. Neither condom use, total number of sexual partners since 1978, nor lifetime number of sexually transmitted diseases was associated with infection.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗