At a forum held Wednesday evening to discuss the future of HIV/AIDS treatments, people, especially those diagnosed positive for the virus, were encouraged to take a different view on the diseases.
“Reprogramming the mind is getting away from viewing HIV/AIDS as a life-threatening disease, and instead, as a life-altering disease,” said Michael McDonald, chairman of the Ohio State University Medical Center AIDS Clinical Trials Unit.
McDonald stressed the importance of learning to live with HIV/AIDS, and how to focus on experiencing a better quality of life beyond taking medication.
In addition to the many new drug therapies available, McDonald noted that some alternate treatments include the use of support groups, acupuncture, spirituality, massage therapy and many herbal remedies.
Fitness and nutrition are essential for people who are taking HIV/AIDS drugs, McDonald said. Along with the physical health benefits, fitness is also a tool for good mental health.
Dr. Michael Para, clinical director of the trial unit, also spoke at the forum about the future of many new HIV/AIDS drug combination therapies.
Para said the government currently recommends taking three different drugs as a standard of care in combination therapies.
He said these therapies can suppress virus replication and delay the development of resistance to HIV/AIDS treatment drugs.
But problems such as toxicity and increased drug-to-drug interactions can arise in these treatments, he said.
Many pharmeceutical companies were on hand to answer questions about specific drugs used in the combination therapies and to hand out literature.
The OSU Clinical Trials Board also announced opportunities to participate in studies that use some of the new combination drug therapy treatments.
Para said national statistics report that HIV/AIDS related deaths from 1997 and 1998 are down 20 percent from previous years.
