HIV & AIDS by Dr arish

HIV and AIDS

The HIV that causes AIDS is the virus that causes AIDS. HIV weakens the immune system by destroying your T cells until they can no longer kill germs. You can have HIV without symptoms. Early detection and treatment offer the best chance of survival.

What is HIV?

HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus. HIV infects and damages the immune system, making some infections more difficult to fight. When HIV weakens the immune system, it can lead to AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency virus).

Because HIV works by inserting its instructions into your DNA, it's called a retrovirus.

What is AIDS?

AIDS is the latest and greatest stage of HIV infection. People with AIDS have very low white blood cells and a weakened immune system. They may have other symptoms that indicate they have AIDS.

Without treatment, HIV progresses to AIDS in about 10 years.

What is the difference between HIV and AIDS?

The difference between HIV and AIDS is that HIV is a disease that weakens the immune system. AIDS is a disease caused by the HIV virus that can occur when the immune system is weakened.

You can't get AIDS if you don't have HIV. Thanks to antiretroviral drugs, not everyone infected with HIV develops AIDS. But without treatment, almost everyone with HIV will develop AIDS.

What does HIV do to humans?

HIV infects damaged immune system cells called CD4 cells, or helper T cells. It destroys CD4 cells, causing a decrease in white blood cell count. It gives you an immune system that can't fight disease even if you don't know it.

HIV starts to make you sick with flu-like symptoms. So, it can hide in the body for a long time without any symptoms. At the same time, it slowly destroys your T cells, and when your T cells are low or your immune system is weakened, HIV turns into AIDS.

AIDS can cause rapid weight loss, extreme fatigue, mouth or body pain, fever, night sweats, and skin changes. Certain diseases are often seen in cancer and AIDS patients and can cause other symptoms.

What are retroviruses?

Retroviruses are viruses that mimic what the human brain does. The human brain contains instructions (DNA) to send messages (RNA) to make building blocks (proteins).

Retroviruses have instructions written in RNA. When retroviruses invade the brain, they modify their RNA to match the cell's genetic code (DNA). It cuts your cell's DNA and adds instructions. Your brain then follows the instructions of this virus as if it were your own.

HIV is a retrovirus. All viruses enter the brain and are replicated by the brain's 'machine'. HIV not only took over a large part of your brain, it also left instructions in your DNA.

Who gets HIV?

It is a misconception that only a few people become infected with HIV. Anyone can get HIV if infected. Unprotected sex or sharing needles are common ways of spreading HIV.

Some people are more likely to get HIV than others. The various HIV positive groups include:

•     People who identify as gay, bisexual and men who have sex with men (MSM).
•     Other races like blacks or Hispanics.
•     People who use money or other means to sell sex are also at risk of contracting HIV.

Even if they are not HIV positive, it is important to remember that they face several problems in accessing preventive care, testing and accessing basic services. Racism, discrimination, poverty and HIV-related barriers continue to create inequality and limit access to quality care.

How common is HIV?

The number of new HIV infections has decreased. In 2019, 1.2 million people were living with HIV in the United States. About 13% of people are unaware of the disease, so regular HIV testing is important.

What are the symptoms of HIV?

You can get HIV without symptoms. That's why it's important to get tested, even if you don't feel sick.

Sometimes HIV infection causes flu-like symptoms. It can mean

•     fever
•     Shaking is one.
•     tiredness
•     sharp throat
•     muscle tension.
•     The night is sweet.
•     Itchy skin.
•     Swelling of the lymph nodes.
•     Spruce is one.
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What are the stages of HIV?

HIV has three stages.

Stage 1: Severe HIV

Some people develop flu-like symptoms a month or two after HIV infection. These symptoms usually disappear within a week to a month.

Stage 2: Chronic stage/clinical delay

After the acute phase, you can be infected with HIV for years without feeling sick. It is important to know that even if you feel well, you can spread HIV to other people.

Stage 3: AIDS

AIDS is the most serious stage of HIV infection. At this stage, HIV seriously weakens the immune system and there is a high risk of contracting opportunistic infections.

Opportunistic infections are common in people with healthy immune systems. When HIV becomes AIDS, it takes advantage of a weakened immune system.

If you have AIDS, you are more likely to develop certain types of cancer. These cancers and opportunistic infections are collectively known as the AIDS-defining diseases.

To be diagnosed with AIDS, you must be HIV positive and have at least one of the following conditions.

•     A cubic millimeter of blood (200 cells/mm3) less than 200 CD4 cells per person.
•     The disease that defines AIDS.

What is the disease that defines AIDS?

AIDS-defining diseases include opportunistic infections, some cancers (usually caused by viruses), and various neurological disorders. Among them;

•     Burkitt's lymphoma.
•     Candidiasis of the bronchi, esophagus, respiratory tract or lungs.
•     Chronic intestinal isosporiasis (cystisosporiasis) lasts more than a month.
•     Coccidioidomycosis, spreading outside the lungs (extensive/pulmonary).
•     Chronic intestinal cryptosporidiosis (longer than a month).
•     Cytomegalovirus disease (except for the liver, spleen or lymph nodes) begins more than a month.
•     Cytomegalovirus retinitis (with fluid loss).
•     Encephalopathy is associated with HIV.
•     Extrapulmonary cryptococcosis.
•     Herpes simplex lesions (longer than a month).
•     Herpes simplex bronchitis, pneumonia or esophagitis (onset more than a month).
•     Extrapulmonary disseminated histoplasmosis (extensive/pulmonary).
•     HIV loss syndrome.
•     Aggressive cervical cancer.
•     immunoblastic lymphoma.
•     Kaposi's sarcoma.
•     Multiple or recurring bacterial infections.
•     Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC), spreads outside the lungs (disseminated/extrapulmonary).
•     Mycobacterium kanssii, spreads outside the lungs (disseminated/excluded).
•     Mycobacterium tuberculosis from any source.
•     Mycobacteria, other species, or unknown species spread outside the lungs (spread/extrapulmonary).
•     Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumoniae.
•     Primary lymphoma of the brain.
•     Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy.
•     Recurrent pneumonia.
•     Recurrent Salmonella sepsis (non-typhoid).
•     Cerebral toxoplasmosis (onset older than a month).