Unusual pneumonia reported
among homosexuals

NEW YORK (AP) - A parasite-caused pneumonia that killed two previously healthy men and infected three others may be linked to "some aspect of a homosexual lifestyle," the national Centers for Disease Control reported today.

Between October 1980 and May 1981, five young men, all active homosexuals, were treated for pneumonia caused by the Pneumocystis carinii parasite, the CDC said.

Pneumocystis pneumonia is generally limited to people with severe immunological problems, and its occurrence in five previously healthy individuals is unusual, the center said in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

"The fact that these patients were all homosexuals suggests an association between some aspect of a homosexual lifestyle or disease acquired through sexual contact and Pneumocystis pneumonia," the report said.

All five patients also had a salivary gland virus and a fungus infection, common ailments among homsexuals, before they were infected with pneumonia, the center said. Although the virus and the fungus could have contributed to their becoming susceptible to pneumonia, a definite link has not been found, the center said.

The five patients, between the ages of 29 and 36, were treated in three different hospitals in Los Angeles, the center said. Two of the patients died.

The patients did not know each other and had no known common contacts or knowledge of sexual partners who had similar illnesses, the report said.