CDC issues recommendations to prevent additional HIV, hepatitis C outbreaks

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today issued recommendations to prevent HIV and hepatitis C outbreaks among people who inject drugs. As of April 21, CDC and Indiana officials have identified 135 people newly diagnosed with HIV in a small Indiana community, most of whom reported injecting a prescription opioid using shared equipment. Most of them were also infected with the hepatitis C virus. CDC recommends that health care providers test all people diagnosed with HIV or HCV for the other virus; encourage the patient’s syringe-sharing and sexual partners to get tested; ensure they adhere to the prescribed therapy; and report all new HIV and HCV diagnoses to the public health department. In related news today, CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D., said many opioid overdose deaths can be prevented by improving prescribing practices, expanding the use of medication-assisted treatment and increasing use of naloxone for suspected overdoses. Opioid analgesic poisoning deaths nearly quadrupled between 1999 and 2011. According to New York officials, emergency department visits for synthetic cannabinoids also are on the rise, with more than 120 visits reported in New York City between April 8 and 15.