From: rsmith@strobe.ATC.Olivetti.Com (Russ Smith)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.basketball.pro
Subject: Response to question
Date: 7 Oct 92 15:29:14 GMT




Subject: Re: Selfish
Newsgroups: rec.sport.basketball.pro

In article <lucy-061092164319@lucy.cstudies.sfu.ca>, lucy@sfu.ca (Lucy Chan) writes:
> rsmith@strobe.ATC.Olivetti.Com (Russ Smith) wrote:
> 
> > 2 players butted heads during the game. One was HIV + the other was not.
> > The HIV+ player now has full blown AIDS, the other player tested HIV+.
> > The incident occurred while being filmed and they used the video as
> > evidence in determining the source of transmission.
> 
> So the collision resulted in open wounds in both players and mixed blood?
> And they also verified that the HIV that the second player has did not come
> from another source, such as unsafe sex or a dirty needle?

Without going into too mcuh detail since I tiook enough heat the last time
this subject came up.

Their are several strains of HIV, and doctors can now essentially determine
where you got the virus by determining what strain you have and backtracking
to likely sources of infection. In this case they backtracked to the head
on collision with an HIV+ soccer player. They cannot be sure in this case
or in any case.

This was done by doctors and confirmed by both the CDC(Center for Disease
Control) and the World Health Organization. Both confirmations appeared
in trasnscripts from those organizations that are reproduced regularly
on the group sci.med.aids. Most of the poster on that group are doctors
or medical students, specializing in immunology. there are even a few
people posting who have AIDS. I recommend reading the group for awhile to
anyone who wants to learn more about it, its very technical, but its very
informative too.

There are several prominent doctors to this day who flat out will state
there are no documented cases of HIV transmission involving straight
sex(the way Magic caught it). They insist that anybody who claims they
got it that way is lying, and is either bisexual or an IV drug user.
That is what the naysayers claim in both cases I mentioned, the victims
are lying. Medical evidence supports the victims.

Trent mentioned a good point, you are far more likely to die in a car
crash than catch AIDS while playing basketball. But its not just because
transmission is difficult, its because to the best of our knowledge, there
is only one HIV+ player in the NBA, while there are millions of cars on
the road.

One last horror story, there is a nurse in San Francisco right now who
contracted AIDS by having an AIDS patient blood inadvertently squirt 
into her eye while taking a blood sample(corneal transplants are now
being blamed for several cases of transmission as they involve bleeding
and there is fluid in the eye to transmit the virus) .

I do not think Magic will infect somebody while playing, I only think it
should be known that it is possible no matter how remote the chance, so
that players can decide on their own whether they want to take the risk
or not(which I am sure most will).



Russ Smith
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"Some people got a chip on their shoulder,
and some would claim it was me."
                                Outta Get Me-- Guns N Roses
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Newsgroups: rec.sport.basketball.pro