HIV is a virus that is unique to human beings. It compromises the immune system by damaging the protective cells of the human body, rendering the body weak and prone to opportunistic infections. The virus multipies in a living cell in the human body. This therefore limits the ways in which it can be transmitted from one person to the other.Unlike other visuses that clear out of the system after awhile, HIV does not clear from the human body.
When many CD4 cells have been attacked by the HIV virus and the body can nolonger fight infections, AIDS sets in. When one has AIDS, medical intervention is required to stabilise the patient. This paper will look at the history of HIV/AIDS, prognosis, transmission, signs and symptoms,diagnosis and management
HIV/AIDS is a disease caused by immunodeficiency virus and usually the illness makes people to be more susceptible to infections particularly opportunistic infections and tumours which are hardly a problem to people with proper functioning immune system. In addition, the susceptibility of the people with AIDS to opportunistic infections increases as the disease worsens (Centre for Disease Control, 1982), Opportunistic infections and Kaposi's sarcoma among Haitians in the United States.
Researches have revealed that HIV has spread to every country in the world and that nearly 65 million have been infected with the virus.Of this figure, it is estimated that nearly 25 million have died from the disease complications. In deed infections rates have remained high in many countries, however, the devastation and scourge of HIV/AIDS has been more prevalent in developing countries. In United States, about 1 million people have been estimated to be living with the HIV virus (Gerald, 2010), HIV/AIDS, a Global Problem.
According to WHO, HIV/AIDS is a pandemic infection that infects people across the divide. In fact from the 2010 statistics, it was established that out of the nearly 40 million people living with the HIV virus infection, 16.8 million people were women and 3.4 million people were children below 15 years. Nevertheless, according to these findings, the death rates in 2010 were lower than those in 2001, 1.8 million deaths from 3.1 million respectively. Furthermore the findings also established that in the Sub Saharan Africa, the highest infection and death rates have been noted, with this region contributing 68% and 66% of the HIV infections and deaths respectively (Post and Holt, 2010), Recent developments in HIV and the kidney.
Acute HIV, also known as the initial period during HIV infection is characterize with influenza like illness including fever, throat inflammation, rash and large tender lymph nodes.But after the initial symptoms the HIV infection enters another stage known as the latency stage. This stage is also known as asymptomatic or chronic stage. The only notable symptoms during this stage include weight loss, fever, gastrointestinal and muscle pains. After this stage, a person with the HIV virus immune system is weakened and develops opportunistic infections. The most common which usually occur in the early stages of the AIDS are pneumonia, 20% drastic weight loss, also referred to as the HIV wasting syndrome. In addition, oesophageal candidiasis and respiratory tract infections are common during this stage. Usually, many of these opportunistic infections are caused by virus, parasites, bacteria and fungi which are controlled by the immune system. Additionally, people with AIDS are more likely to develop opportunistic infection induced cancers like Kaposi’s sarcoma, cervical cancer and nervous system lymphoma. Also, these people have symptoms like weight loss, sweats, weakness and prolonged fever (Huang et al, 2011), International HIV-associated Opportunistic Infections (IHOP) Journal.
The best prevention for HIV is to abstain from sexual intercourse since over 90% of the transmission results from sexual related intercourse with infected people; however condom use has been researched and established to reduce the risk by 80%. Early treatment with the pre exposure prophylaxis and a daily dose of tenofovir can be used to protect couples from infections.Zidovudine antiretroviral, post exposure prophylaxis given within 72 hours after infection has been useful in the treatment of HIV. Also, mother to child treatments have been useful in prevention of mother to child infections (Liu, 2005), Diagnosis, Management and Prevention of HIV infection and AIDS,Cochrane Database Syst.
References
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) (1982).Opportunistic Infections and Kaposi’s Sarcomaamong Haitians in the United States. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep.31 (26): 353–354; 360–361.
Gerald, L. M., John, E. and Bennett, R (2010). HIV/AIDS, a Global Problem (7th ed.). Churchill Livingstone/Elsevier.Philadelphia, PA. pp. 21-135.
Huang, L; Cattamanchi, A; Davis, JL; den Boon, S; Kovacs, J; Meshnick, S; Miller, RF; Walzer, PD; Worodria, W; Masur, H. Opportunistic Infections and Management: Proceedings of the American HIV Management Society. International HIV-associated Opportunistic Infections (IHOP) Journal. 2011. 8 (3): 294–300
Liu, J.Manheimer, E. and Yang, M. (2005). Liu, Jian Ping. ed. "Diagnosis, Management and Prevention of HIV infection and AIDS".Cochrane Database Syst Rev (3)
Post, F. and Holt, S. (2010). "Recent developments in HIV and the kidney".Current opinion in infectious diseases22 (1): 43–48.
