Public Health Magazine: Winter 1995, Vol.5, No.1
Departments
Columbia School of Public Health in the News

Kaposi's sarcoma virus breakthrough The discovery of the viral cause of Kaposi's sarcoma, a cancer frequently suffered by AIDS patients, was announced by Patrick S. Moore, M.D., M.P.H., of CSPH's Epidemiology Division and by Yuan Chang, M.D., of P&S;'s Department of Pathology. The collaborators, who are husband and wife, disclosed that the virus belongs to the herpes group of viruses, not the group that includes HIV. The temporary name for the new agent is Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpes virus (KSHV).

There was clearly excitement among the 2,000 participants in Washington at the annual meeting of the American Society for Microbiology where Moore presented the findings. UCLA's Steven Miles, M.D., co-chair of the session, told The New York Times, "This is a major breakthrough in Kaposi's sarcoma and will change the scope of research." A detailed description of their landmark study was published in the December issue of Science. CSPH joins other environmental health science centers

Rosenfield to lead ASPH Allan Rosenfield, M.D., dean of CSPH, was voted president-elect of the Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH) at the annual meeting late last year. Rosenfield will assume the presidency of the association of 27 accredited graduate schools of public health in the fall of 1996. Previously, as ASPH legislative committee chair and the American Public Health Association's executive board chair, Rosenfield contributed significantly to the national health care reform debate. In his new capacity, he will continue to promote prevention and the role of schools of public health in improving people's health.

Fourteen percent of U.S. adult population homeless at some time At some point in their lives, an estimated 13.5 million American adults have been completely without a home, living in shelters, bus depots, or abandoned buildings, while another 12.5 million have had to stay with friends or relatives. According to a study by Bruce Link, Ph.D., of CSPH's Division of Epidemiology, approximately one in eight Americans experience homelessness during their lifetime. Link's study was published in the December issue of the American Journal of Public Health.

AIDS prevention efforts not reaching young gay men, but they could Foreshadowing AIDS proliferation in upcoming generations of gay men, researchers report that previously effective prevention programs are failing to reach young gay men, particularly black and Hispanic men. According to a study by Laura Dean, Ed.M., and Ilan Meyer, Ph.D., both of the Sociomedical Sciences Division's AIDS Research Unit, in New York City ethnic minority gay men were at least three times more likely than white gay men to test HIV-positive. The study, which was funded by the New York Community Trust, the Aaron Diamond Foundation, and the National Institute of Mental Health, investigated an ethnically diverse group of 174 New York City gay men aged 18 to 24. The investigators found an HIV rate of 40 percent among blacks and 30 percent among Hispanics. The study suggests a need for retargeting past prevention programs to young ethnic gay men.

A related study by CSPH and the College of Physicians and Surgeons demonstrated that such a retargeted program among urban minority adolescents can be very effective. After a program of six one-class period lessons, Roger Vaughan, M.S., and Heather Walter, M.D., of the Center for Population and Family Health, found that participating students had fewer sexual partners, a lower incidence of sexually transmitted diseases, more monogamous relationships, and more frequent use of condoms.

"This study shows that even a minimal dose of intervention, if carefully planned, can provide students with the information and skills they need to protect themselves from AIDS," said Walter. The study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Migraine headaches linked to epilepsy Researchers at CSPH, working with the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, reported recently that people with epilepsy are more than twice as likely to develop migraine headaches as those without the disorder. Migraine and epilepsy are the most common disorders that lead to neurologic consultations in the U.S., and a relationship between them has long been suspected but never proved. Nevertheless, Ruth Ottman, Ph.D., of CSPH's Epidemiology Division and lead researcher of the study, was "surprised by the strength and consistency of the relationship between migraine and epilepsy." The report was published in Neurology in November, 1994.

Abortion pill trial begins at Columbia-Presbyterian Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center is one of the sites for the trial of the French abortion pill mifepristone, which started in December. According to investigator Carolyn Westhoff, M.D., of CSPH and P&S;, a great deal of interest has been generated, and eight to ten women are enrolling in the study every week. "The hospital and university have been extremely helpful and positive in getting the study up and running," Westhoff said.

The drug must be taken no later than nine weeks into the pregnancy and requires three separate visits to the hospital. Despite the number of visits, mifepristone may turn out to be an important alternative to surgical abortions. "For many women," Westhoff explained, "mifepristone enhances their sense of control and integrity. It's more private."

Wawer receives 5-year NIH/NIAID Grant The National Institute for Allergies and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health announced a major grant to Maria Wawer, M.D., associate clinical professor of public health, to investigate whether the spread of HIV is checked when intensive programs are instituted for other sexually transmitted diseases. The grant, which was for $1.4 million the first year, will fund research in Uganda, but the lessons learned will be applied to other settings including the U.S.

Toubia Named Humanist of the Year The Fourth Universalist Society in New York City named Nahid Toubia, M.D., Humanist of the Year in January for her work in fighting female genital mutilation (FGM). In addition to her appointment as assistant professor at CSPH, Toubia is also president of RAINBOW. The organization mobilizes international agencies, governments, and community organizations on behalf of women's right to control their bodies. It particularly focuses on the abolition of female circumcision, which is the tradition responsible for FGM. (See related article, page 8.)

CSPH professor named to study section In October, Associate Professor Regina M. Santella, Ph.D., was appointed to the NIH's Metabolic Pathology Study Section. Dr. Rosenfield congratulated Dr. Santella for this "clear indication of the high standing in which you are held by your peers."

Santella said she has learned much about how the study sections review grants, and she gave advice to researchers seeking NIH grants. "Less-experienced investigators should enlist the help of more-experienced collaborators who have had NIH grants," said Santella. And as for proposals, "Don't suggest descriptive experiments. It's the kiss of death. Instead, proposals should be hypothesis-driven and mechanistic."