Hope. It is our driving force.
The Mount Sinai Neuro-AIDS Program is committed to the development of safe and effective treatments for neurvous system complications of HIV infection, and extending the basic understanding of the mechanisms responsible for these disorders.
Our focus is patient care, clinical research, health care education, and public awareness. Our methodology includes: research; state-of-the-art clinical care; experimental therapeutics; and educational, outreach and support programs designed for the patient, health care provider, and community.
Our commitment to research and education remain strong, because it is our hope that knowledge will continue to lead us on the path toward answers.
Education
The Mount Sinai Neuro-AIDS Research Program is actively involved in the education of health care providers, patients and the general community in issues surrounding AIDS and the nervous system. These activities are performed at the local, national and international levels. Dr. Simpson lectures extensively throughout the world on Neuro-AIDS and conducts teleconference lectures. We also provide visiting primary care and infectious diseases physicans from the U.S. and abroad to join our Neuro-AIDS Program for training. Our program includes a Neuro-AIDS fellowship, training Neurologists in the clinical care and research of neurological complications of AIDS.
Outreach
The Mount Sinai Neuro-AIDS Research Program generates extensive publications in medical journals, text books and the lay press. We are currently working on the launch of our Worldwide Education Project on Neurological Complication of HIV, which will include slide sets, CD-Rom, and educational videotapes demonstrating patients with HIV-related neurological disorders.
Support
People with HIV and peripheral neuropathy often experience pain, burning and numbness in their arms and legs. Coupled with the demands of a complex medical regimen requiring multiple doses of medication, it is not uncommon for patients to feel confused, anxious, fearful, depressed, isolated and in despair. Traditional support groups often deal with some of these issues, however, research has not explored the benefits achieved with exposure to group settings.
Our HIV-neuropathy Educational Support Group was launched last year, and combined medical seminars with classical group technique to create a safe and positive psychosocial environment. This provided members with opportunities to discuss medical impairments and other related issues.
This year, we plan to launch a study on a Hypnotherapy for people with HIV Neuropathy.
Our goal is to document the additional benefits of psychosocial intervention with traditional medical care in AIDS-related neuropathy, an area that has not been explored adequately. Similar research in AIDS patients and other diseases such as cancer have demonstrated the importance of psychosocial intervention, and the impact that psychosocial factors have on the progression of disease.
In time, we hope to establish the foundation for combining emotional and educational support, along with medical intervention for an interdisciplinary approach to the treatment of neurologic complications of HIV.
