YOURS IN HEALTH

LESBIANS AND AIDS

Nationwide, Lesbians as a group have the lowest rate of infection by the HIV virus which causes AIDS. Some Lesbians and Gay men insist that, therefore, AIDS is not an issue Lesbians need be concerned with. The Gay community at large decries the folly of discrimination directed at gay men as the sole carriers of this deadly disease: it is well understood by those educated even a little in the etiology of AIDS that, in the U.S., the concentration of the disease among gay men is a scientific anomaly and that AIDS is already spreading into the general population. The HIV does not discriminate and, as members of this species affected by the virus, Lesbians are susceptible to it. The assertion by some Lesbians and g gay men that Lesbians have nothing to fear sounds a tone remarkably akin to that sounded by many heterosexuals -and it is a death knell.

Health Issues Task Force (HIT) of Cleveland has been farsighted enough to compile information about AIDS pertinent to Lesbians.

The following information was compiled by HIT from these sources:

Women's AIDS network, "Lesbians and AIDS: What's the Connection?", San Francisco AIDS foundation brochure; Cindy Patton and Janis Kelly, Making it: A Womans Guide to Sex in the Age of AIDS (1987); Chris Norwood, Advice for Life: A Woman's Guide to AIDS Risks and Prevention (1987).

Editor's Note: One source of transmission of the HIV to women and Lesbians has been overlooked by HIT: rape. Now, along with the trauma caused by such a violation, the fear of impregnation, and the possibility of contracting other sexually transmitted diseases, comes the potential to acquire this era's most deadly disease: AIDS.

Am I at Risk?

Although lesbians are not at high risk of contracting or transmitting HIV, there have been a number of reported cases of AIDS among lesbians. Two of these are

believed to be from woman-to-woman transmission. Lesbians who may be at risk are those who:

* Share needles or any other paraphernalia if using IV drugs.

This is the greatest risk category for lesbians.

* Have had sexual contact with--

--people who use IV drugs

--men who have had unsafe gay sex

--people of either sex whose sexual histories are unknown

--people who are hemophiliac, or who received blood transfusions between 1979 and 1985.

Have used semen for donor insemination from a donor known to be HIVantibody positive, or whose risk status is unknown. women who are infected with HIVantibody positive, or whose risk status is unknown. Women who are infected with HIV can pass it on to their unborn children during pregnancy. HIV can also be transmitted through breast milk.

Have received blood transfusions or blood products between 1979 and 1985.

How can I reduce my risk?

IV

Don't share needles and other drug paraphernalia. Clean your works with alcohol or bleach between each use.

Decide what, if any, safer sex techniques you and your partner should be using. Safer sex with women includes protection from infected blood (including menstrual blood and from infected cervical and vaginal secretions. Oral sex with a partner who is infected with HIV during her period is considered very risky. (In, the beststudied case of woman-to-woman transmission, the women had oralvaginal contact during menstruation, shared sex toys, and caused vaginal bleeding separate from menstruation by their sexual activities.) Oral sex at other times may be less risky, but probably not entirely safe if hour partner has an HIV infection. Experts believe use of a dental dam can reduce risk further.

Don't share sexual toys

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HRONICLE

between partners. If shared, a toy such as a vibrator should be covered with a clean condom before each woman uses it. Toys can also be scrubbed with a 1:9 bleach and water solution and rinsed thoroughly in clean water between uses. Disposable latex gloves reduce risk of HIV transmission during hand/finger-to-genital contact.

Learn more about safer sex practices for women.

What if I want to use donor insemination to become pregnant?

You need to do a risk assessment of your donor(s) on a caseby-case basis. Get information about your donor's health, medical and sexual history. If you want a gay man as a donor, remember that many, but not all gay men are infected with HIV. Not all gay men have engaged in high risk behaviors.

Many lesbians have asked their donor(s) to take the HIVantibody test. The test should be done twice prior to insemination with a period of 6 months between tests. Please have your donor(s) tested ONLY at a center that guarantees anonymity and provides counseling.

All sperm banks and private physicians have been advised to test sperm donors for the HIV antibody.

If I'm not at risk, what does this have to do with me?

* Many lesbians have been personally affected by AIDSrelated deaths or illnesses of people close to them.

*Increased anti-gay hostility and discrimination as a result of

AIDS hysteria affect lesbians as well as gay men.

epidemic

* The AIDS emphasizes the need to address problems of substance abuse in the lesbian community and inadequate access to sensitive health care for women, especially women of color and poor women.

* Insemination choices and co-parenting options have been limited by AIDS.

in

Many lesbians are involved AIDS-related work as volunteers and paid workers. Lesbian contributions have strengthened and enriched the fight against AIDS.

* As AIDS-related issues continue to be a part of our lives, we will need to find creative and effective ways to support one another.▼

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