J m tfe wafe's Mm party 1 j NYON Country... with a Kick! Thursday College Night 25 cent Drafl $1 U- Call- If’s Till 1 1 pm No Cover with Colleae ID 1500 Harvey Rd. Post Oak Mall 979-696-3102 Sci Tech Page 6 THE BATTALION Wednesday, NovemW: Researchers: Delaying HIV drugs may be OK for many CHICAGO (AP) Symptom-free HIV patients can safely hold off taking AIDS drugs longer than previously thought, two new studies suggest. When antiretroviral drugs first became available in the mid-1990s, their dramatic effects prompted many doctors to recommend immediate treat ment for all HIV patients to keep the virus in check. The drugs are costly, must be switched often to remain effective and can cause serious side effects, u It could be com forting to people to realize that watchful waiting won't harm you. — Dr. Jeffrey Laurence AIDS researcher so doctors have sought to delay treatment whenever possible. Recently revised guidelines indicated the drugs could be started when levels of disease fighting CD4 white blood cells dropped to 350 per cubic mil limeter instead of the previously recommended 500. The new studies suggest the drugs can still be effective if started when the patient’s CD4 count is even lower — at least 200 — and even if there are high levels of virus circulating in the blood. The studies found that for many patients, delaying treatment does no harm. Dr. Jeffrey Laurence, senior scientist at the American Foundation for AIDS Research, called the studies good news. “It could be comforting to people to realize that watchful waiting won’t harm you,” he said. The studies were published in Wednesday’s Journal of the American Medical Association. In one study, researcher Andrew Phillips of Royal Free and University Medical College Medical School in London and colleagues analyzed data from 3,226 patients treated in European HIV clinics from 1996 to 2000. Patients began treatment with at least three HIV drugs and were followed for an aver age of more than two years.. Eighty-five percent reached undetectable virus levels by 32 weeks. Those who started out with CD4 counts between 200 and 349 fared just as well as those with initial counts of 350 or higher. The second study, led by researchers Robert Hogg and Dr. Julio Montaner at the University of British Columbia, involved 1,219 HIV patients who started triple-drug treat ment between 1996 and 1999. By September 2000, 82 had died of AIDS-related causes. Most deaths were in patients whose initial CD4 counts were less than 200 — the bulk in those with counts less than 50. Those whose initial counts were around 200 fared just as well as those with higher levels. Dr. Roger Pomerantz, chief of infectious diseases at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, said the studies will probably change treatment for HIV-infected patients in developed countries. Pomerantz said the recom mendations may not be appro priate for some patients, partic ularly women. Southern forests endangered by urban sprewl Wednesd ATLANTA WJ rban sprawl could i, >rests in the South fo , ill ion acres by the? 1)20. federal officials report releasedMooda;. About 6 percent oil •gion’s forests are likely ) S t, but the number ol ,ould stay about the -cause large amountsdi .iltural land will be > pine tree farms, i Mississippi. Louiw rkansas, officials said. But study leaden i re is and David Wear, f the U.S. Forest Se aid the forest loss wo# jpt native plants and»?: nd eliminate outdoor lion areas. Bears, nd foxes are am . xecies that areexpedee: nable to adapt. Grtisaj The study found i egions to be particulad? erable: the sMi .ppalachian Mountain .ppalachian foothill tretch from Virgins dabama; the coastal d long the Atlantic Oceer ic Gulf of Mexico; ini lorida Panhandle. Only a small y f Southern forest las [Junior qib )ct. 27. Fi TR BRO :r-ii[)s th.! te Aggi, igular sc * After ent. f Ghannam.aspoks ace , Kf Society of Aim rark th ;ers. said his organs rionlk ' ,! to help landowner 1 iecorc “St use of their 1* mbarras he idea is to mi' g ains t T tmically beneficial Slocu e to stay in the bus annot hr irest management k&M's t e not tempted to sells Lac k 11 t developer who wait unior qu into a shoppingcei ave com MSC Current issues Awareness Presents... Airport Security What your government has not told you. A panel of experts from the General Accounting Office(GAO), the Federal Bureau oflnvestigation(FBI), along with the Assis tant Dean of the Bush School will discuss different aspects of homeland security including issues such as Aiport security, the probability of future attacks, and allegations the US govern ment ignored warnings given before 9/11/01. IJildJ-ITiTl m Thursday, Nov 29 Koldus Room 110 7-8:30pm cia.msc.tamu.edu