HIV and ID Observations

November 25th, 2018

Does Experiencing Childhood Illness Make Someone Stronger? How One Person Turned Adversity into Remarkable Success

Many people growing up with chronic illness become resilient. Whether it’s Crohn’s Disease, or cystic fibrosis, or diabetes, or the sequelae of an accident, or whatever condition they have, they impressively live their life just like the rest of us — occasionally regressing or slowing down only during a flare of the illness. But then there’s an […]

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November 18th, 2018

HIV and HCV Treatment, Shorter Antibiotic Courses, Malaria-Sniffing Dogs, and Other ID and HIV Reasons to Be Grateful, 2018 Edition

As noted here before, I’m a big fan of Thanksgiving, a great excuse to get together with family and friends, and to eat a gargantuan amount of food.* (*On this last point, non-U.S. citizens will wonder how this differs from any other time we “Americans” get together. Indeed, we are the Land of Giant Portions. Ever eat […]

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October 8th, 2018

“Mini”-Really Rapid Review — IDWeek 2018, San Francisco

Once upon a time, the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) wasn’t much of a research conference. It consisted mostly of review sessions on topics deemed worthy of an update or a refresher, led by noted experts in the field. They would cite the latest literature on endocarditis, or mycoplasma, or prosthetic […]

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September 9th, 2018

Doravirine Sets a New Standard for NNRTIs — But What Role in HIV Treatment Today?

The HIV drug class called “non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors,” or NNRTIs, must have something of an inferiority complex. First, anything defined by what it is not is already in trouble. Believe me, hepatitis C was thrilled when it could shed the “non-A, non-B hepatitis” label. Second, despite their high antiviral potency and good tolerability, the NNRTIs have […]

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August 23rd, 2018

Eye Worm, MALDI-TOF, New Lyme Testing Approach, Dogs Fail as C. diff Testers, Uiyk (?), and More — A Summer Is Getting Shorter ID Link-o-Rama

A recent chilly spell here in Boston recalled a universal truth about aging — that summer seems to get shorter every year. As far as I can tell in my unscientific poll of everyone who will engage with me on this topic, there are no exceptions to this rule. Everyone thinks summer is shorter than when […]

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August 5th, 2018

Why Caring for People with HIV Is Still Great

Earlier this year, I wrote a piece about friends and colleagues of mine who have left HIV clinical practice. Something about it touched a nerve. It’s one of the most commented-on pieces in the history of this blog. Read this for a typical response. Admittedly, it was kind of a downer — but it might have been […]

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July 22nd, 2018

FDA Approves First PI-Based Single-Tablet Treatment for HIV — How Will It Be Used?

The latest HIV drug approval from the FDA came this past week with the release of a single-tablet treatment containing the following drugs: Darunavir (DRV) 800 mg Cobicistat (c) 150 mg Emtricitabine (FTC) 200 mg Tenofovir alafenamide (TAF) 10 mg Often abbreviated “DCF-TAF,” this is the first full treatment regimen in a single pill with a […]

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July 15th, 2018

On-Service Digest, July 2018 — with Special Section Just for Staph aureus

I’m currently on-service for the inpatient ID consult team, and this is July. At a teaching hospital.  Here’s where some would play scary music. After all, the interns and fellows have just started! YIKES! But no scary music for me — I love working with the July newbies. Because whatever they lack in experience or efficiency, they more than make up […]

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July 8th, 2018

Surgeon Who Was Denied Disability Insurance for Taking PrEP Tells His Story

Earlier this year, urology resident Dr. Philip Cheng appeared on the front page of the New York Times. Here was the headline: He Took a Drug to Prevent AIDS. Then He Couldn’t Get Disability Insurance. The piece understandably drew widespread attention, with sharp disapproval of the denial from ID specialists and public health officials. We couldn’t […]

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May 28th, 2018

Predatory Journals Are Such a Big Problem It’s Not Even Funny

I’ve made fun of academic spam numerous times on this site. It’s those emails from dubious “predatory journals,” written in cheerful but awkward prose, with flowery praise and open invitations to submit research on various scientific topics. You know, the emails that start: Dear Dr. Paul E. Greetings for the day! Most of my coverage has been on […]

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