Many of you have probably seen the signs around town about the Tattoo Expo that is happening this weekend in Phoenix. Tattoos have been growing in popularity over the past decade, but that doesn't mean they’re completely safe. Recently there was a recall of tattoo ink because the ink was contaminated with an unusual (and stubborn) bacteria [...]
Today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released information about an infection some folks were getting because of the ink used in their tattoos. It reminds me that there are some good practices that folks who want tattoos can ask their artist about - I wrote about it last year in Tattoo You? Regardless [...]
The use of successful antiretroviral medicines in the 1990s was a game changer for HIV by reducing deaths. Now, it’s changing the game again. While the new med’s were originally developed to keep people living with HIV/AIDS healthier and alive longer- the new med’s are good enough to be used as a prevention method. Using [...]
Chronic disease often calls up bad images for people because it means living with the disease for a long time. But… there was a time when cancer wasn’t chronic disease because people got sick and died pretty quickly. The same goes for HIV. When it was first discovered in the early 80s people quickly transitioned [...]
Arizona’s HIV surveillance hit the mark in the latest CDC national Incidence report. Arizona led the nation in testing and treatment completeness and test results. We’re very proud to have published the first ever Arizona specific HIV incidence estimate which is now posted on our website.
Regardless of what you think about tattooing and body piercing- it’s clearly popular. Tattooing and body piercing are obviously invasive- which brings up the question: do these (now common) practices pose a health threat? Are they safe? The answer is simple. Like just about everything else in life- it can be safe as long as [...]
Today is World AIDS Day – an opportunity to remember those impacted by HIV/AIDS, look back at its history and toward future developments that may prevent limit its spread. HIV was first identified in the United States in 1981. In the early 1980’s, public health efforts focused heavily on identification of the virus. Once the [...]
was held at ASU July 27th -29th. This is the first time that we have brought together all of the fields of infectious disease including HIV, TB, STDs, Vector-borne Disease, Foodborne Disease and Invasive Bacterial Infections in a unified training. The training: Had almost 300 attendees from across the state, including physicians, nurses, sanitarians, local health [...]
The "Arizona Black AIDS Task Force" is hosting, "Voices of Change HIV/AIDS Leadership Summit" this Saturday. The task force welcomes those who envision an Arizona with no new HIV/AIDS cases in our African American community and with the best possible life for HIV positive folks. Interested folks can call 602.845.9437 or [email protected] to information about [...]
A study published this week in the journal BMC Immunology suggests that being vaccinated for smallpox triggered by the smallpox vaccine may inhibit the growth of the HIV. The researchers extracted white blood cells from subjects and exposed them to HIV in a culture dish. The results showed that HIV replication was slowed by about [...]
