The 17th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI), one of the most important annual HIV meetings, was held this year from 16-19 February. As with previous meetings, this conference publishes extensive webcasts, and these are already online.

Making this scientific content available without login or subscription is itself a significant achievement. It is a model for broadening access to medical research to a degree that is currently unmatched by any other meeting.

The webcasts this year include oral presentations and audience questions, poster discussions, the opening lectures and the pre-meeting set of training workshops for young investigators.

The conference website also includes a searchable abstract database.

Full coverage from the meeting will follow in the next issues of HTB, HTB South and ARV4IDUs.

Until then, we encourage readers to view lecture lectures directly via the above links.

Slides from a community talk given to the CROI feedback meetings organised by BHIVA can be downloaded below.

BHIVA CROI community slides reduced PDF (4MB)

As you may have noticed the i-Base website has had a major makeover.

Please bear with us over the next few days while the upgrade continues. We aim to do this within the following week.

Comments/feedback are welcome. Please email simon.collins@i-Base.org.uk.

Important notes

• 05 March – Some issues of HTB (mainly 2003-2005) still need to be added online as html web pages.
• 03 March – while the google search engine updates the links for the new site, some searches are bringing older links or links for content that is on the site, but which links to the home page. Please bear with us….
• 20 February – ARV4IDUs is still in the old format.
• 18 February – If you have problems using the online subscription forms please email your subscription request or change to your details to subscriptions@i-Base.org.uk.

Updated 3 March 2010

DHICE Project (Databases for HIV: Integration, Collaboration, Engagement)

DHICE is a new project to encourage collaborative working practice between different HIV cohort projects in the UK.

The following reports from the 12th European AIDS Society Conference held in November 2009, Cologne are included in the January/February issue of HTB.

• Screening for anal cancer recommended for HIV-positive men
• Once-daily darunavir/r monotherapy is suboptimal as initial regimen in treatment-naïve people
• Central fat accumulation remains a significant problem in patients starting HAART after 2005 with higher incidence in women compared to men
• Alendronate improves bone mineral density in HIV-positive people with osteoporosis at 96 weeks
• Pilot PK study of two generic paediatric formulations of lopinavir/ritonavir vs originator products
• TMC278 does not show teratogenic potential in animal models
• No clinically relevant interactions between TMC278 and oral contraceptives (norethindrone plus ethinylestradiol)
• Etravirine pregnancy data from five cases: no dose adjustment required
• Selected PK and drug interaction summaries at EACS

More reports from IAS 2009 held in Cape Town in July in HTB September/October 2009. Also in this issue of HTB:

• Raltegravir (Isentress) granted an expanded licence from the European Union Commission.
• Detention and removal of HIV-positive people in the UK.

In the July/August issue of HTB we reported results from the DART trial pesented at the 5th IAS conference.DART is an important study comparing clinical and laboratoy based monitoring sponsored by the MRC. We encourage readers to see full details from the many posters and presentations posted on the study website.

http://www.ctu.mrc.ac.uk/dart

We compiled the following Q&As in response to the increased number of calls and emails about swine flu.

Updated: September 1 2009

Artist Marta Marcé has produced a limited edition print inspired by her recent commission for the Infection and Immunity Clinic at The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel.

Proceeds from the print, priced at £125, are kindly being donated by the Hospital to i-Base as part of the Vital Arts programme at Barts and the London NHS Trust.

• How to purchase the print
• Barts and the London NHS Trust Vital Arts Programme

We would like to thank St Barts and the Royal London Hospital for their generous support.

A resource on how clinical trials work, why they are important, understanding the results and the role of the advocate in research.

• Download PDF 399 Kb
• Read this guide online in our training manual

This guide is also available in Italian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish.

Community involvement in HIV research is important. Advocates have always argued for active patient and community representation and involvement at all stages of our health care, including research.

This includes being involved on the type of research and the design of trials. It helps make sure that:

• Trials are run properly
• All patients receive at least the current standard-of-care treatment
• We are able to follow both enrolment and how the trial is run
• We are able to monitor and follow early results
• As patients and advocates we have a good idea on how latest treatment advances may affect the standard of care in the future.

• Read HTB South online
• PDFs
• Subscribe – it’s free

HTB-South is an edition of HIV Treatment Bulletin that focuses on research and news that has particular relevance to southern Africa countries.

HTB-South is produced four times a year in partnerhip with the Southern African HIV Clinician’s Society. The print edition is distributed to the 17,000 members of this organisation. It is also published online.