The Division of Infectious Diseases (ID) continues to provide scientific leadership and to obtain funding in a wide range of clinical research in both HIV and non-HIV disciplines. Our NIH-supported AIDS Clinical Trials Unit (Kathleen Squires, M.D., Principal Investigator) is one of the major components of the research efforts of the Division. The current AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) funding cycle began on January 1, 2000, and the year 2004 represented the 18th year of support that we have received funding from NIAID. The current funding cycle will carry us through 2005.

The other major source of funding for HIV research is the California Collaborative Treatment Group (CCTG, Robert Larsen, M.D., USC Principal Investigator) of the University-wide AIDS Program of the University of California, also in its 19th year of funding (funds appropriated by the California State Legislature) and the NIMH study evaluating neurocognitive effects of HIV (California NeuroAIDS Tissue Network, Robert Larsen, M.D., USC Principal Investigator) which was successfully re-competed for an additional five years of funding.

Our past participation in these three collaborative research groups has emphasized development of treatment and prevention modalities for HIV and its complications. The most recent study under the aegis of the CCTG, in collaboration with the Rand Corporation with supplemental funding from the National Institutes of Health, is investigating methods to improve adherence to the complex treatment regimens prescribed for people with AIDS.

The Division is heavily involved in the education of students, residents and clinical fellows. Fellows in Infectious Diseases receive clinical training on the inpatient services at the LAC+USC Medical Center, Kenneth Norris Jr. Cancer Hospital and USC University Hospital, and for outpatient care in the Health Consultation Center II and Rand Schrader Clinic. The Division conducts a weekly Clinical Case Conference where cases from the LAC+USC Medical Center and private practice consultation services are presented as unknowns; the residents and fellows are required to discuss differential diagnoses, work-up, and management of these cases. The Division also conducts a monthly Infectious Diseases Grand Rounds where experts in a variety of fields related to infectious diseases are invited to provide cutting edge lectures. For the second year, the Division continued its highly successful and popular monthly Morbidity and Mortality Conference where pathologists, microbiologists, and other specialists (e.g. from cardiology, radiology, neurology, ophthalmology and surgery) are invited and show tissue specimens, slides of infecting microorganisms, radiographic and non-radiographic imaging procedures for cases seen by the consultation services in the prior month. A biweekly Core Curriculum Lecture Series was continued and is in its second academic year, wherein, ID faculty members provide one-hour didactic lectures. The Core Lecture Series is structured to cover the entire spectrum of infectious diseases topics every two years. The newly renovated monthly Journal Club, which was is structured to teach fellows how to critically review selected articles, appearing in the infectious diseases literature continued in its second year. The ID fellows along with students and house officers rotating on the ID service are required to attend all of these teaching activities. In addition to these general infectious disease educational activities, there is a monthly HIV Clinical Case Conference HIV and weekly HIV Grand Rounds-weekly that is held in the Rand Schrader HIV Clinic. All of these conferences are CME approved.

The Division of Infectious Diseases staffs the HIV (Rand Schrader, 5P21) Clinic at LAC+USC Medical Center. The Clinic is open for morning and afternoon sessions Monday through Friday, as well as a Tuesday evening session, where approximately 30,000-40,000 patient visits occur each year. Dr. Kathleen Squires is the Medical Director of the Rand Schrader Clinic. Faculty members of the Division serve as primary care providers and also supervise physician assistants who mange patients-in HIV-in the primary care HIV clinic. Members of the Division also attend in a weekly Infectious Diseases Clinic (held in 5P21) for patients without HIV, supervise fellows in their weekly HIV continuity clinics, and mentor medical residents and physician assistant students rotating through the Clinic.