New York HIV case may not be harbinger of "supervirus"
Did last week's report that a New York gay man had been infected with an HIV superstrain hearld the emergence of a new, more virulent epidemic? Maybe not:
The virulent and highly drug-resistant case of AIDS recently found in a New York City man is similar in some ways to two Canadian cases that appeared in 2001 and did not lead to the spread of a "supervirus," as some fear may happen in New York.
The Canadian cases turned out to be readily treatable despite their worrisome features. The infected patients -- two men who had no contact with each other -- are alive and in good health, said the physician who treated them. He originally described the unusual findings two years ago in a medical journal.
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The dramatic downhill course the New York patient took could have meant that his HIV was especially virulent, but it could equally reflect preexisting weakness in his immune system that has nothing to do with the strain of virus.
"We know the whole progression to disease is multifactorial. It has to do with the patient, and it has to do with the virus. We don't know yet why some viruses cause rapid disease and some don't," said Miguel Quiñones-Mateu, a virologist at the Cleveland Clinic.