The impact of antiretroviral therapy on AIDS survival observed in a province-wide drug treatment programme

Erythrocytosis is a relatively common complication of renal transplantation. Recent observations indicate that angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors correct renal transplant erythrocytosis. Other drugs to inhibit the renin-angiotensin system have been developed recently. The newest of these is losartan, a specific antagonist of the angiotensin II type I receptor. We report three patients in which the use of losartan controlled posttransplant erythrocytosis. Our findings suggest that losartan can be effective and safe in the treatment of posttransplant erythrocytosis.     

Comparison of the prevalence of antibodies to human herpesvirus 8 (Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus) in Brazil and Colorado

The prevalence of human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8; Kaposi's sarcoma [KS] herpesvirus) infection was determined by IFA in 297 persons living in Brazil and Colorado. The prevalence of antibody to HHV-8 in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1-seropositive gay men with and without KS was similar in Brazil and Colorado. In Brazil, the prevalence of HHV-8 antibody was significantly greater in HIV-1-seronegative gay men than in HIV-1-seronegative male intravenous drug users. HHV-8-seropositive Brazilian gay men who had a clinical diagnosis of KS or who were infected with HIV-1 had significantly higher titers of HHV-8 antibody than did HHV-8-seropositive, HIV-1-seronegative Brazilian gay men. These findings provide further support for the association between HHV-8 infection and KS and suggest that, as in the United States, HHV-8 infection is transmitted sexually in Brazil.     

Toward econometric models of the security risk from remote attacks

Security risk models have successfully estimated the likelihood of attack for simple security threats such as burglary and auto theft. Before we can forecast the risks to computer systems, we must first learn to measure the strength of their security     

A New Grid Block System for Reducing Grid Orientation Effect

The grid orientation effect (GOE) is a long-standing problem plagueing reservoir simulators that employ finite difference schemes. A rotation of the computational grids yields a substantially different solution under certain circumstances. A Cartesian grid with one axis parallel to the line joining an injector and producer gives a solution significantly different from a grid that has the axes oriented at 45° to this line. This article presents a new grid system that can reduce the grid orientation effect. This system involves using a unique grid-block assignment where rectangular grid blocks are interspersed with octagonal grid blocks. The boundaries are populated with triangular grid blocks. The entire domain consists of a “structured” grid block system referred to as the hybrid grid block (HGB).     

Survival of HIV-infected Brazilians: a model based on the World Health Organization staging system

This software package was written to semi-automate the routine calculation of antibody titres from ELISA data without standards, by fitting the data to a generalised four parameter logistic curve. Data recording from a plate reader by direct serial interface to a diskfile is also facilitated.