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18 — OUT IN THE MOUNTAINS — NOVEMBER 1997

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The “ABCs”of Hepatitis

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Carol L. Thczyer, M.D.

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KAISER l>l.'iRMANEN‘l"I‘EL

Communi

0 Health Platfl

 

NOR‘I’lllZ§.AST DIVISION

Georgia Health Center
RR#2, Box 1760 Fairfax, VT 05454
Tel: 802/524-9595
Fax: 802/524-2867

Michael Gigcmte, gPh.D.

Psyclzosyrzthesis ,
Counsel ing 63’ 'l"I1era;7y

(802) 254-8032 15 Myrtle Street‘, Brattleboro VI‘ 05301

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22,9-5220

Burlington

860-6360

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Lic. Psychologist - Master

LYNN GOYETTE, M.S., M..-t.
Lic. Clinical Mental Health Counselor

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COUNSELING .CEN,TEll or NOl‘t’l‘l--lEltN VERMONT

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Counseling " Dsqchofzlwera pg

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Kwah Wa’Adabi

Astrologer
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Waterfront Holistic Healing Center _ ‘ _ 7
(Zomerstone Building, Suite 213 ' 3 Main_Strc-cl, Burlington, VI‘ 0740!
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any people are ask

ing ”What is Hepa

titis B and how is it
different from Hepatitis A”?

-As the name describes,
Hepa means liver and titis
means inflammation. A and B
are the most common of the
Hepatitis viruses, there being
up to G known at the present
time.

Hepatitis A is contracted
primarily by what is know as
a fecal oral route. This is be-
cause when a person is infec-
tive, they are producing and
shedding the virus in the feces.
Quite often, it spreads rapidly
through grade schools due to
the decreased cleanliness of
children. Another way of con-
tracting Hepatitis A is through
eating food that is infected.
This is mostly seen in third
world countries and also from
uncooked fish from infected
waters, such as clams and oys-
ters. _

Hepatitis A can be very
benign, to the point that a per-
son does not even know that
they have it, or it can cause
nausea, vomiting, stomach
cramps, fatigue andjaundice,

he holiday season is
upon us, and I think it's
a good time

to consider gratitude. I cer-
tainly have a great deal to feel
grateful for this year. When I
arrived in Vermont six months
ago from New York City, I was
penniless, homeless, friendless
and severely depressed. My t-
cell count was in a nose—dive
and my viral load was off the
scales. Had it not been for the
loving concern of my big
brother, who is an assistant
professor at UVM, and the
great heart and fierce intelli-
gence of Ayana Al-Faruk, my
client service representative at
Vermont CARES, I'm quite
sure I would have dropped

from the end of my rope.
Working with a variety of
other local service organiza-
tions, including the Committee
on Temporary Shelter [COTS],
Vermont CARES helped me
along the path to self—suffi-
ciency, gettingme started on
treatment for my HIV at
Fletcher Allen's Comprehen-
sive Care Clinic [CCC] and
guiding me through a daunt-
ing labyrinth of social services.
Before long, with the help of a
HOPWA certificate (Housing
Opportunities for People with
AIDS), I was able to get a small
apartment of my own in the
Old North End, which I have

BY MICHAEL A. HORN, D.O.

and can run for up to six
months. After running its
course, a person is immune to
contracting it again.
Hepatitis B is has both
similarities and differences to
Hepatitis A. Its similarity is
that it can be benign to the
point that a person does not
even know they have had it, to
the same symptomsof nausea,
vomiting, stomach cramps, fa-
tigue and jaundice. But this is
where the similarities stop.
Hepatitis B is contracted
through either sexual activi-
ties, from mother to fetus or
through the sharing of infected
needles. Even in the absence
of high—risk activities, such as
unprotected anal sex, there is
a high risk of contracting
Hepatitis B. Once a person
contracts Hepatitis B, there are
a number of courses it can take.
One is that the virus will run
its course, and the person is
now immune to the virus, and
once resolved, can no longer
pass the virus to other.-indi-
viduals. Another is that a per-
son can become a chronic car-
rier of the virus. This means
that a persons body does not

recently left for an apartment
in the new CARES housing
project at Fort Ethan Allen. I
am responding well to combi-
nation therapy. My viral load
has disappeared and my t-cells

have nearly doubled. I have

just begun working again.

Since coming to Vermont,
I have been amazed and in-
spired by the dedication of our
AIDS service organizations to
the improvement of many lives
besides my own. But from a
profound respect for the work
they do also arises a respon-
sible need to criticize them. To
criticize them constructively, I
hope,-to help correct flaws in
the system so that people liv-
ing with AIDS in Vermont may
receive the finest possible care.
As AIDS patients, we must not
allow our genuine gratitude to
blind us to the inevitable drift
of all human organizations to-
ward ossification, self-serving
goals and entrenched proce-
dure.

Take as an example the
Comprehensive Care Clinic at
Fletcher Allen. While. the CCC
definitely delivers first-rate

.medical services, in my opin-

ion it has developed organiza-

tional weaknesses that could

easily be avoided. It seems to
have stopped listening to its
own mission statement, which
declares that ”all patients com-

get rid of the virus and is po-
tentially contagious at all
times. Another disadvantage
of being a chronic carrier, is
that there is a 15-20 percent
chance of developing cirrhosis
within 5 years, and the risk of
liver cancer increases 300
times.

Once contracted, the
main treatment of either
Hepaitits A or B is mainly sup-
portive. Only in cases of liver
failure in Hepatitis B are medi-
cations used. The best thing to
do is to rest and avoid contact
that can potentially infect other
individuals, and avoid ingest-
ing anything that will put a
strain on the liver. An example
of this would be alcohol.
Probably one of the best ways
of protecting yourself is
through immunization for
both Hepatitis A and B. For
Hepatitis A, it is a series of 2
shots and for Hepatitis B a se-
ries of 3 shots given over a six
month period. These can be
obtained from your family
physician or through Mens
Health Project. I

 

ing to the Comprehensive Care
Clinics have a right to establish
a strong collaborative working
relationship with their health
care team that is based on trust,
caring and expertise.”

Every patient at the CCC
is told repeatedly that he or she
will be a full participant in the
system of care, with cases con-
sidered on individual merit in
an atmosphere of partnership
and collaboration. But the
clinic persists, for instance, in
its blanket dismissal of.Vita-
min B-12 supplements and tes-
tosterone therapy for patients
with HIV

I literally had to badger
the staff into testing my blood
levels for both these sub-
stances, despite recent, widely
distributed scientific findings
of the positive effects of both
of these supplements on the
course of HIV disease.

They tested me improp-
erly forione and misinterpreted
the results of both. All in all,
they have proved resistant,
obstructive and ill—informed
about anything that, in their
view, smacks of ”alternative”
or ”complementary” therapy,
despite the fact that supple-
mental vitamin and hormonal
therapies are common practice at
major AIDS treatment facilities

RESURFIECTING, p23