SAFE BLOOD by Joseph Feldschuh M.D

Author:Joseph Feldschuh, M.D.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Free Press
Published: 1990-07-15T00:00:00+00:00

AIDS AND SOCIETY

The epidemic of AIDS, which is now only in its early stages, is destined to change the order of American society and probably the world as well. One of few positive changes that might result from this scourge is the ultimate restructuring of the blood banking system to a much safer form than now exists.

The lag time between the discovery of a danger and an appropriate public response is sometimes incredibly long. There was at least a 15-year period during which evidence accumulated that asbestos was toxic and caused cancer before it was outlawed as an insulating material. The cost to society of removing asbestos years later is many times greater than it would have been had appropriate measures been taken early on.

Similarly, the danger of radiation causing cancer and other injury to the body was known for at least 15 to 20 years before strong measures were taken to limit exposure. We shudder today when we consider the unnecessary radiation that American volunteers were exposed to in the early years of atomic testing. Yet even before the atomic era, there was evidence that radiation was dangerous and life-threatening.

Historians will look back in amazement at the opportunities that were missed to contain the transmission of AIDS before it spread to millions of people in the United States. At the present time there are an estimated 1.5 to 3 million infected people who continue to spread AIDS through society without adequate safeguards. In high-risk urban areas like New York, AIDS is still not classified as a communicable or sexually transmitted disease. In 1987, the New York State Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists sued the State Health Department to change this classification, but they lost the case in court. While there are serious civil rights issues involved, such considerations must be weighed against public health concerns. Laws applying to syphilis or gonorrhea, which were specifically passed to protect society against the spread of these sexually transmitted diseases, are not enforced against the politically sensitive AIDS. More significant, with new drugs, improved treatment, and greater knowledge about AIDS, early detection may enable HIV-infected persons to live longer, healthier lives once they are identified.

We may be deluding ourselves in an effort to avoid unpleasant choices, trading off present discomfort for future upheaval. Eventually this disease may destroy many of the freedoms we now take for granted. The scope of the ultimate damage will depend on how long we delay instituting basic public health measures to contain the spread of AIDS.

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