Liver disease may be being missed in primary care.		"We Care Because YOU are there” Get tested for HCV"
Liver disease may be being missed in primary care. Treatable chronic liver disease may be being missed in primary care, because abnormal liver function test results are often not adequately investigated, according to a study in this week's BMJ. Researchers from the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham, England followed up all adult patients who had an abnormal result for liver function. This was based on a test requested by their doctor between January and June 1995. Of 873 patients followed up, 342 were not under hospital review. 58% of patients who required additional investigation had no further tests. 157 of these patients were thought to require further investigation, yet no further tests had been requested for 91 (58%). continued..... Hepatitis C and Heart Disease Myopathy HCV RNAs were found in the hearts of patients with cardiomyopathies, and negative strands of HCV RNA were also detected in the hearts, suggesting that HCV replicates in myocardial tissues. PMID: 10078023 Detection of HCV-Specific Sequences in Chronic Myopathy with Hepatitis C. PMID: 10529547 The importance of (HCV) infection has been recently noted in patients with cardiomyopathies. PMID: 10078023 Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy - HCM A high prevalence of HCV infection was found in patients with HCM, particularly of the apical variety, suggesting that HCV is an important causal agent in the pathogenesis of the disease. PMID: 10406581 The nationwide support group lists are now up! Please, find your state and see if there is a support group near you. If there is not, please consider starting one of your own. There are so many people who need a better understanding of this disease and to realize it's not a "death sentence"! So please, if you don't see a support group listed in your area, think about the possibility of starting one of your own. Anyone interested in doing this can contact any of us here at Frontline Hepatitis Awareness and we can help you get one started. We Care Because YOU Are There!	66 patients had been partially investigated by their doctor, and in 7 patients results suggesting a treatable chronic liver disease had not been followed up, and no referral had been made to a gastroenterologists. Stephen Ryder, Consultant Hepatologists at the Medical Centre, said, "Our findings show that many important diagnoses - including communicable, potentially life-threatening diseases - are missed." "Patients with persistently abnormal test results should be referred to hepatologists or gastroenterologists," he concluded. BMJ 2001; 321: 276 Apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and hepatitis C virus infection. A high prevalence of HCV infection was found in patients with HCM, particularly of the apical variety, suggesting that HCV is an important causal agent in the pathogenesis of the disease. PMID: 10406581 Researched by Kevin Donnelly before his passing in 2000. The first "Dancing With the Dragon" (copywrited) Frontline Musical and testing event on January 27th was a success in several ways. The attendance according to ticket stubs was 103 but I believe that there were actually around 120 there plus the musicians and crews. The best part of this is that for the first time I saw around 70% new faces. This is really a good sign that we reached folks. Shelly Mc Kiernan of the Seattle-King Count Department of infectious diseases spoke to open the event and addressed current epidemiology issues and had packets there with harm reduction info, and how to and where to go information for testing options. She gave good statistics to a 'new' crowd of persons. We tested for HCV with the help of Terry Baker and our VP Bruce Burkett, Jaime Hart and other volunteers. The silent auction proved a good way to bring in extra monies to help cover the costs and the payments made to the three bands and the MC, Sylvia Stayformore. Selling fresh chicken chili also helped cover costs. We did this without any outside funding and we still came out ahead by some amount of money. I have all the receipts to send her so it should be a short time to figure what we are able to put into a trust for patients and events in the future. The music was very good and folks danced and ate and got informed and educated and had a general good time and hopefully left with some insight into this situation. We hope to plan another event each year and grow with the next one to a National Band and a larger room. People seem eager to learn once they are aware of the situation with HCV, just that some are in denial who are still in active addiction.	A 12 step special interest meeting has formed in Washington State. As the statistics are showing around an 85 to 90% chance of either passing on or contracting HCV from IV and nasal usage of drugs this is an important decision by N/A to allow us to begin a meeting with this two folded recovery issue. The stipulations are that we must follow the guidelines of N/A and A/A during the meeting. As we must be clean and sober to be enrolled in treatment this is an important step. Our experience strength and hope are needed by addicts. We encourage others to approach their Regional or local chapters and present the option at area meetings. The first meeting is in Seattle at the Fremont Baptist Church on 36th Ave N in the Fremont area of Seattle by the Bridge. Time is 7:00 PM on the Third Tuesday of each month. So it will be February 20th this month. Please list support meetings with us. May 6th - Hepatitis Awareness Day We are planning a Health Fair on the East side of the mountains this year. To be held in Pasco or Kennewick, Washington. Any help or suggestions would certainly be appreciated. If you have a great idea for the theme for this year, please contact Cindy by e-mail or call her at 509/545-6338. Thanks! So that is the report on the event. Thank you to all who posted this around on lists for us all. We still need petition signers. Bruce and I and Cindy are definitely going to DC and will take both our Surgeon General Petition and the one Deborah Quick designed to get retribution to those who got HCV after 1992 from transfusions. Both will be presented to Congress. If you have not signed or posted this info please do as we must have them all in hand before we leave for DC in mid March. We are leaving for the HFI and new Advisory Council events on around the 13th or so and thus need all them by March 1st, 2001, please. Thank you. Ane-Frontline http://frontline-hepatitis-awareness.com to sign petition.
Eric Dubois needs help! Eric is located in Seattle WA and is near end stage liver disease. We was rejected from the transplant list due to lack of proper medical facilities needed and no immediate family to support him during his recuperation following transplant. Please help if you know anyone in Seattle who may be willing to give Eric rides to and from his appointments. Our appointment to have him reinstalled on the list is coming up this week. Call our toll free number if you can help or know someone and pray he gets his liver, he is 55 and want so to live as do we all. The Frontline TOLL FREE number is: 877-436-5653
Ane Palmo - Founder & President		Bruce Burkett - Vice President