RESEARCH THAT IS MAKING STRIDES IN PREVENTING THE TRANSMISSION OF HIV
Alan E. Greenberg, MD, MPH, George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services
Dr. Greenberg's ground-breaking work in HIV/AIDS research has led the way to new preventions and safer procedures and treatments for HIV-infected patients and those at risk. He says, "The current U.S. investment in this epidemic is proof that if we dedicate the resources, we can help slow the rate of infection."
As an intern in New York City during the early 1980s, Alan Greenberg, MD, MPH walked into the exploding HIV epidemic. Since then, he has devoted his career to HIV/AIDS prevention, research, and treatment. As a recognized leader in this field, Greenberg's early studies and research have had an enormous impact in preventing HIV transmission and reducing the morbidity and mortality rates of HIV-infected adults.
As one of the first researchers sent to Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) in the mid-1980s, Greenberg discovered that children infected with malaria who showed drug-resistance to the treatment would require blood transfusions. However, because screenings to determine the safety of the blood supply did not exist then, HIV was spreading rapidly. By working with the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the public health community, Greenberg and his team helped to establish these screenings and as a result, began to put an end to this fatal cycle. Greenberg's early research in Africa also proved that anti-retroviral medications were effective in preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission, the same state-of-the-art treatment that pregnant HIV-infected women still receive today. His team also was responsible for showing that antibiotics reduced bacterial infections in HIV-infected adults, thereby reducing the morbidity and mortality of the disease. This research led to WHO and CDC recommendations about the importance of preventing infections in HIV-infected adults.
"Having proudly served the U.S. government for 20 years, I am a first-hand witness to the deep need for the financing and promotion of public health research and care, particularly when it comes to HIV," says Greenberg. "And for the last five years, the U.S. has made the largest investment in this epidemic — more than any other country — to target those countries that are the most heavily affected by the disease. This has been an enormously beneficial program in reaching those at risk for, or infected by HIV and is an incredible testament to our society, our country and to every American."
Greenberg's research continues to modernize the way HIV/AIDS is treated and prevented. His team at George Washington University recently provided technical and epidemiological assistance to the D.C. Public Health Department to improve its HIV/AIDS surveillance system. The improved monitoring showed the tragedy that the District of Columbia has the highest rate of HIV/AIDS infections in the country - something which had been suspected in the past but which the new system confirmed. This critical information helped galvanize the public health community to respond to this rapidly-spreading epidemic. Greenberg concludes, "I would like to see the U.S. continue fighting this public health catastrophe, making the same effort in our local communities as we do globally. Only with an increased partnership between policymakers, researchers, and communities will we see a result in the decreased number of incidences of HIV infections."