AIDS is short form of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.It is a condition in which the immunity of human body is greatly reduced and very common infection can cause death.
AIDS is- Acquired indicating that one can get infected with it;
- Immune Deficiency indicates a situation of weakness in the bodys system that fights diseases.
- Syndrome indicates about a group of health problems that make up a disease.
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) causes AIDS .
People are diagnosed with AIDS when their CD4 cell count drops below 200 cells/mm or if they develop certain opportunistic illnesses. People with AIDS can have a high viral load and be very infectious. What is HIV ? HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus. It weakens a person’s immune system by destroying important cells that fight disease and infection. How HIV is transmitted ? fluids that attacks the body’s immune system, specifically the CD4 cells, often called T cells. Over time, HIV can destroy so many of these cells that the body can’t fight off infections and disease. These special cells help the immune system fight off infections. Untreated, HIV reduces the number of CD4 cells (T cells) in the body. This damage to the immune system makes it harder and harder for the body to fight off infections and some other diseases. Opportunistic infections or cancers take advantage of a very weak immune system and signal that the person has AIDS. Stages of HIV infection ?When people get HIV and don’t receive treatment, they will typically progress through three stages of disease. Medicine to treat HIV, known as antiretroviral therapy (ART), helps people at all stages of the disease if taken as prescribed. Treatment can slow or prevent progression from one stage to the next. Also, people with HIV who take HIV medicine as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load have effectively no risk of transmitting HIV to an HIV-negative partner through sex.
Stage 1: Acute HIV infection
Within 2 to 4 weeks after infection with HIV, people may experience a flu-like illness, which may last for a few weeks.
This is the body’s natural response to infection. When people have acute HIV infection, they have a large amount of virus in their blood and are very contagious. But people with acute infection are often unaware that they’re infected because they may not feel sick right away or at all. To know whether someone has acute infection, either a fourth-generation antibody/antigen test or a nucleic acid (NAT) test is necessary. If you think you have been exposed to HIV through sex or drug use and you have flu-like symptoms, seek medical care and ask for a test to diagnose acute infection.Stage 2: Clinical latency (HIV inactivity or dormancy)
This period is sometimes called asymptomatic HIV infection or chronic HIV infection.
During this phase, HIV is still active but reproduces at very low levels. People may not have any symptoms or get sick during this time.
For people who aren’t taking medicine to treat HIV, this period can last a decade or longer, but some may progress through this phase faster.
People who are taking medicine to treat HIV (ART) the right way, every day may be in this stage for several decades.
It’s important to remember that people can still transmit HIV to others during this phase, although people who are on ART and stay virally suppressed (having a very low level of virus in their blood) are much less likely to transmit HIV than those who are not virally suppressed.
At the end of this phase, a person’s viral load starts to go up and the CD4 cell count begins to go down.
As this happens, the person may begin to have symptoms as the virus levels increase in the body, and the person moves into Stage 3.
Stage 3: Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)
AIDS is the most severe phase of HIV infection. People with AIDS have such badly damaged immune systems that they get an increasing number of severe illnesses, called opportunistic illnesses.
Without treatment, people with AIDS typically survive about 3 years. Common symptoms of AIDS include chills, fever, sweats, swollen lymph glands, weakness, and weight loss.
Cure for AIDS ? No effective cure currently exists for HIV. But with proper medical care, HIV can be controlled. Treatment for HIV is called antiretroviral therapy or ART. If people with HIV take ART as prescribed, their viral load (amount of HIV in their blood) can become undetectable. If it stays undetectable, they can live long, healthy lives and have effectively no risk of transmitting HIV to an HIV-negative partner through sex. Before the introduction of ART in the mid-1990s, people with HIV could progress to AIDS (the last stage of HIV infection) in a few years. Today, someone diagnosed with HIV and treated before the disease is far advanced can live nearly as long as someone who does not have HIV. No effective cure exists for HIV. But with proper medical care, HIV can be controlled. Some groups of people are more likely to get HIV than others because of many factors, including their sex partners, their risk behaviors, and where they live.AIDS is short form of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.It is a condition in which the immunity of human body is greatly reduced and very common infection can cause death.
AIDS is- Acquired indicating that one can get infected with it;
- Immune Deficiency indicates a situation of weakness in the bodys system that fights diseases.
- Syndrome indicates about a group of health problems that make up a disease.
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) causes AIDS .
People are diagnosed with AIDS when their CD4 cell count drops below 200 cells/mm or if they develop certain opportunistic illnesses. People with AIDS can have a high viral load and be very infectious. What is HIV ? HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus. It weakens a person’s immune system by destroying important cells that fight disease and infection. How HIV is transmitted ? fluids that attacks the body’s immune system, specifically the CD4 cells, often called T cells. Over time, HIV can destroy so many of these cells that the body can’t fight off infections and disease. These special cells help the immune system fight off infections. Untreated, HIV reduces the number of CD4 cells (T cells) in the body. This damage to the immune system makes it harder and harder for the body to fight off infections and some other diseases. Opportunistic infections or cancers take advantage of a very weak immune system and signal that the person has AIDS. Stages of HIV infection ?When people get HIV and don’t receive treatment, they will typically progress through three stages of disease. Medicine to treat HIV, known as antiretroviral therapy (ART), helps people at all stages of the disease if taken as prescribed. Treatment can slow or prevent progression from one stage to the next. Also, people with HIV who take HIV medicine as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load have effectively no risk of transmitting HIV to an HIV-negative partner through sex.
Stage 1: Acute HIV infection
Within 2 to 4 weeks after infection with HIV, people may experience a flu-like illness, which may last for a few weeks.
This is the body’s natural response to infection. When people have acute HIV infection, they have a large amount of virus in their blood and are very contagious. But people with acute infection are often unaware that they’re infected because they may not feel sick right away or at all. To know whether someone has acute infection, either a fourth-generation antibody/antigen test or a nucleic acid (NAT) test is necessary. If you think you have been exposed to HIV through sex or drug use and you have flu-like symptoms, seek medical care and ask for a test to diagnose acute infection.Stage 2: Clinical latency (HIV inactivity or dormancy)
This period is sometimes called asymptomatic HIV infection or chronic HIV infection.
During this phase, HIV is still active but reproduces at very low levels. People may not have any symptoms or get sick during this time.
For people who aren’t taking medicine to treat HIV, this period can last a decade or longer, but some may progress through this phase faster.
People who are taking medicine to treat HIV (ART) the right way, every day may be in this stage for several decades.
It’s important to remember that people can still transmit HIV to others during this phase, although people who are on ART and stay virally suppressed (having a very low level of virus in their blood) are much less likely to transmit HIV than those who are not virally suppressed.
At the end of this phase, a person’s viral load starts to go up and the CD4 cell count begins to go down.
As this happens, the person may begin to have symptoms as the virus levels increase in the body, and the person moves into Stage 3.
Stage 3: Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)
AIDS is the most severe phase of HIV infection. People with AIDS have such badly damaged immune systems that they get an increasing number of severe illnesses, called opportunistic illnesses.
Without treatment, people with AIDS typically survive about 3 years. Common symptoms of AIDS include chills, fever, sweats, swollen lymph glands, weakness, and weight loss.
Cure for AIDS ? No effective cure currently exists for HIV. But with proper medical care, HIV can be controlled. Treatment for HIV is called antiretroviral therapy or ART. If people with HIV take ART as prescribed, their viral load (amount of HIV in their blood) can become undetectable. If it stays undetectable, they can live long, healthy lives and have effectively no risk of transmitting HIV to an HIV-negative partner through sex. Before the introduction of ART in the mid-1990s, people with HIV could progress to AIDS (the last stage of HIV infection) in a few years. Today, someone diagnosed with HIV and treated before the disease is far advanced can live nearly as long as someone who does not have HIV. No effective cure exists for HIV. But with proper medical care, HIV can be controlled. Some groups of people are more likely to get HIV than others because of many factors, including their sex partners, their risk behaviors, and where they live.