HIV/AIDS

What Is AIDS?

AIDS is short for acquired immune deficiency syndrome. AIDS is a disease that slowly destroys the body's immune system. Without these important defenses, a person with AIDS can't fight off germs and cancers.HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. It kills an important kind of blood cell -- the CD4 T lymphocyte, or T cell. These T cells are the quarterbacks of the immune system. As they die off, the body becomes more and more vulnerable to other diseases. Germs take this opportunity to invade the body. The diseases they cause are called opportunistic infections (OIs for short). When people with HIV get these infections -- or when their CD4 T-cell levels get too low -- they have AIDS. Usually it takes many years for HIV to weaken the body's immune system to the point of AIDS. Anti-HIV drugs help prevent this. Even when a person already has AIDS, the drugs can help a person get better.

Anti-HIV drugs let many people with HIV infection live healthy lives. Combinations of these powerful medicines work very well, but they often have serious side effects, such as vomiting, diarrhea, and fatigue. And people with HIV have to keep taking these drugs every day for the rest of their lives. Ask anyone who's taking these "drug cocktails" -- it's best to avoid getting HIV in the first place.

AIDS is a worldwide epidemic. Most cases are in Africa, but the disease is spreading most rapidly in Eastern Europe and Asia. Even if a cure were found tomorrow, AIDS will be the most deadly disease ever to plague mankind.

What Causes It?

HIV -- human immunodeficiency virus -- causes AIDS. HIV infection is for life. There is no cure, but anti-HIV drugs keep HIV in check. Unfortunately, 95% of the world's HIV infected people cannot afford this medicine. There are a few people who say HIV does not cause AIDS. Some are scientists, but none of them are AIDS experts. They offer only false hope and no answers. Overwhelming medical and scientific evidence shows that HIV is the AIDS virus. Every major health organization in the world says that HIV is a killer.

There are two main types of HIV -- HIV-1 and HIV-2. HIV-2 is rare outside Africa.You can't catch HIV unless another person's body fluids -- blood, semen, or vaginal secretions -- enter your bloodstream. This can happen through the tip of the penis, through the vagina, through the rectum, or through an open wound.

HIV is spread:  
  -By having sex without a condom. Vaginal and anal sex carry a high risk. The risk of getting HIV from oral sex is low.
  -By sharing needles and/or syringes to inject drugs or steroids.
  -From a mother to her infant during pregnancy, delivery, or breastfeeding.
  -By getting a tattoo or piercing from a dirty needle.
  -By transfusions, blood products, or organ transplants. This kind of transmission no longer happens in developed countries, which test all donated blood and organs for HIV.

You can't get HIV from a toilet seat or from touching an infected person. You can't get HIV from being sneezed or coughed or spit on by an infected person. You can't get HIV from kissing (although there is a theoretical risk from very deep "French" kissing). You can't get HIV from a mosquito, flea, or tick bite.

Women and HIV/AIDS:

A July, 2004 report released by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS states that women are now nearly half of all people infected with HIV. Statistically, 48% of all adults living with HIV are women, up from 35% in 1985. The situation is even more alarming in sub-Saharan Africa, where women make up 57% of those living with HIV. Young African women aged 15-24 are three times more likely to be infected than their male counterparts.

Testing:

There are three main types of HIV test. The first type of test is the HIV antibody test. This test shows whether a person has been infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Information on this page concentrates on HIV antibody testing.

The second type of test is P24 antigen testing. It is primarily used to screen the blood supply but in some places it is used for testing for HIV. P24 antigen is a protein that is part of the HIV. Early in the infection, it is produced in excess and can be detected in the blood serum by a commercial test. The P24 test can detect HIV infection before the HIV antibody test can. Therefore, P24 antigen test is used in diagnosing HIV early in the course of infection.

The third type of test is used when a person knows that she or he is already infected with HIV. These tests show the level of virus in the blood (viral load test).

The HIV test looks for antibodies in a person's blood. When HIV (which is a virus) enters a person's body, a special chemical is produced. These are called antibodies. Antibodies are the body's response to an infection. So if a person has/ develops antibodies to HIV in their blood, it means they have been infected with HIV.

For most people it takes 3 months for these antibodies to develop. In rare cases, it can take up to 6 months. It would be extremely uncommon to take longer than 6 months for antibodies to develop.

Getting tested earlier than 3 months may result in an unclear test result, as an infected person may not yet have developed antibodies to HIV. The time between infection and the development of antibodies is called the window period. In the window period people infected with HIV have no antibodies in their blood that can be detected by an HIV test. However, the person may already have high levels of HIV in their blood, sexual fluids or breast milk. HIV can be passed on to another person during the window period even though an HIV test will not show that you are infected with HIV. So it is best to wait for at least three months after the last time you were at risk before taking the test. Some test centres may recommend testing again at 6 months, just to be extra sure.

It is also important that you are not at further risk of getting infected with HIV during this time period. The test is only accurate if there are no other exposures between the time of possible exposure to HIV and testing. The only way to know for sure whether you are infected with HIV is to have an HIV antibody test. It is not possible to tell from any symptoms.

Statistical Information:

Global Estimates of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, as of end 2003:

$ Defined as children 0-14, as of end 2001, who have lost one or both parents to AIDS

Regional HIV/AIDS statistics, end of 2003.

# The ranges around the estimates in this table define the boundaries within which the actual numbers lie, based on the best available information. These ranges are more precise than those of previous years, and work is under way to increase even further the precision of the estimate that will be published mid-2004.

United States AIDS and HIV by exposure category and sex reported through December 2002.