By  Silvia Chavela Rivas

NOTICIAS, Oaxaca

Official silence on hundreds of cases

The coordinator of the Frente Común Contra el Sida, Bill Wolf, said there are 935 persons in Oaxaca living with this disease, however, COESIDA reports just 369 persons being seen in their clinic.  “Therefore, we can certainly ask, where are the other 566 cases who are living in our state and what medical attention are they receiving?”

            He said that as of June 30, 2004, the state statistics report 2,298 cases.  “Based on recent statements from COESIDA, it is estimated 1,369 have died.  This means that 935 AIDS cases are alive today in Oaxaca.”

Bill Wolf  indicated that given the number of AIDS cases (patients) attended in the state AIDS Clinic, “reported to be 369, we should question the whereabouts of the other 566 cases, reported living in the state of Oaxaca, where are they, and what attention are they receiving?

“We know,” he continued, “there are cases in the medical establishments such as IMSS (Mexican social security) and ISSSTE (worker’s security), but the type of attention and treatment  being given is not included in the state’s reports.  It’s possible, also, some cases are being seen in the medical services of PEMEX (the federal petroleum agency), and others in the medical services of the armed forces.  And, how many of those 566 cases are receiving this type of attention or none?  It is impossible to know.  We can only assume a large number of persons in the state of Oaxaca are not receiving the attention they deserve.

But then, too, he explained, of those 369 persons, classified as patients by the directors of COESIDA, only 272 are receiving AIDS medicines (called antiretrovirals).  These medicines should be given in combinations of three, the famous “cocktail of three” and should not be interrupted for any reason in their application.

“COESIDA has given us information about the different regimes of combinations, but not about how many patients are receiving them, telling us that this changes constantly in the treatment, depending on the development of the disease in each patient,” he noted.

Bill Wolf referred to a survey by the Frente Común two years ago in which it was confirmed that only 41 percent of the patients in COESIDA were receiving a full compliment of antiretroviral medicines, though the directors of the clinic at the time insisted that fully 100 percent of their patients were receiving them.

            What can be said about the other 97 patients, those who are not receiving any AIDS medicines?  COESIDA affirms that this situation could be the result of patients who do not yet need these medicines and that this is the decision of their doctors.  But this factor may also be financial.

            It is known, there are two medical tests which are required and can be very costly for the patient.  One is the “viral load” test, which measures the actual number of HIV in the patient, and the CD4 test, which measures the number of lymphocytes in the body, the first costing the patient $1,650 pesos, the second costs $720 pesos.  Together they cost $2,370 pesos.  How often these are needed also depends on the doctor, but may be required every six months in order to receive their medicines, that is to say, some $4,740 pesos per year.

            “We at the Frente Común consider that it is important to know how many patients in the state AIDS clinic are not receiving their medicines for lack of money.”