This is an already existing and functional interdisciplinary multicentered consortium of experts dedicated to health care, clinical as well as basic research related to HIV infection in children (PAIDS) and pregnant women. Members of this Bronx based network include health care professionals, biostatisticians, pharmacologists, and scientists in the filed of pediatrics, immunology, infectious diseases, microbiology, molecular biology and genetics. The network effectively covers the Bronx the largest epicenter of pediatrics AIDS nationwide. It is the first and largest PAIDS center in the USA> The projected new pediatric HIV infected newborns in the geographic catchment area of the consortium is also the largest, with over 4% of all cord bloods being HIV antibody positive. Members of the group have gained experience in adult ATEU trials and in pediatric treatments designed at AECOM. The development of a pediatric ACTG will complement our existing efforts by enabling us to include adult and pediatric members of the same HIV infected family in therapeutic trials. Such an AIDS Family oriented approach has improved enrollment and longterm compliance. The Albert Einstein College of Medicine PAIDS Cooperative Treatment Group will interact with the NIH ACTGs to foster research aimed at the design of novel therapeutic approaches in the areas of immune reconstitution, anti-HIV agents and treatment trials for HIV related diseases.
