
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, February 7, 1991                   TAG: 9102070030
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: ATLANTA                                LENGTH: Short

EDUCATED GUESS: 13 TO 128 PATIENTS GIVEN AIDS VIRUS

Dentists and surgeons infected with AIDS could have transmitted the virus to as many as 128 patients or as few as 13, the Centers for Disease Control says.

The educated guesswork by the national health agency shouldn't be taken as gospel, but reinforces concerns about medical professionals passing on the disease, an American Medical Association official said.

A CDC draft report for an upcoming conference on medical safety said a statistical projection found that between 13 and 128 Americans could have been infected with the AIDS virus by dentists or surgeons.

CDC researchers reported last month that a Florida dentist who has since died of AIDS, Dr. David Acer, infected three patients.

The Atlanta-based health agency based its estimate on a statistical model comparing the estimated number of AIDS-infected dentists and surgeons, the projected number of surgical or invasive procedures performed, and the theoretical risk of transmitting the AIDS virus during such procedures.

by CNB