Agenda - Council - 05/28/1991 - Laserfiche WebLink

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will develop AIDS within five years after becoming infected. It is unclear at this time what proportion of H~V-infected people will go on to develop AIDS within 10 years after acquiring infection; however, it is likely that the proportion will be substantially greater than that documented at five years of follow-up. HIV is transmitted through four primary mechanisms: 1) sexual contact; 2) exposure through use of needles contaminated with infected blood, including needle-sharing for the purposes of intravenous (IV) drug injection; 3) maternal transmission, where the virus is passed from an infected mother to her unborn child; and 4) exposure through transfusion of contaminated blood or blood products. Transfusion-related transmission of HIV has been virtually eliminated as a public health problem in this country, with the advent of H~V I I I I I I I I antibody screening of blood donors. As of December 1987, 303 cases of AIDS had been reported in Minnesota. Homosexual/b~sexual men accounted for 83% of these cases. Homosexual/bisexual men who also use IV drugs accounted for 6%, and heterosexual IV drug users accounted for 3% of cases. Most cases (87%) occurred in residents of the Twin I I I Cities metropolitan area. Epidemiologic studies have documented that the likelihood of acquiring HIV infection increases with the number of sexual partners that an at-risk individual has had within the past five years. In addition, male homosexuals, who have had large numbers of sexual partners and who participate in receptive I I I anal intercourse, have been demonstrated to be at very high risk of acquiring infection. By 1990, the Minnesota Department of Health estimates that 1,350 to 1,850 Minnesota residents will have developed AIDS. There is no vaccine or preventive treatment for the disease, and medical therapy can only temporarily I I I I I