HIV

Definition:
Human Immunodeficiency Virus; The virus that causes AIDS. p339 pp338-342 Chapter 10

HIV is a sexually transmitted infection. It can also be spread by contact with infected blood, or from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth or breast-feeding. It can take years before HIV weakens your immune system to the point that you have AIDS.

Staff, Mayo Clinic. "Definition." //Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research//, 11 Aug. 2012. Web. 07 Mar. 2013.

Related Pages:

 * AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Disorder)
 * @Viral STDs
 * @STDs (Sexually Transmitted Diseases)
 * @Bacterial STDs

Symptoms of HIV:
The symptoms of HIV and AIDS vary, depending on the phase of infection.

__Primary Infection:__ The majority of people infected by HIV develop a flu-like illness within a month or two after the virus enters the body. This illness, known as primary or acute HIV infection, may last for a few weeks. Possible symptoms include:


 * Fever
 * Muscle soreness
 * Rash
 * Headache
 * Sore throat
 * Mouth or genital ulcers
 * Swollen lymph glands, mainly on the neck
 * Joint pain
 * Night sweats
 * Diarrhea

Although the symptoms of primary HIV infection may be mild enough to go unnoticed, the amount of virus in the blood stream (viral load) is particularly high at this time. As a result, HIV infection spreads more efficiently during primary infection than during the next stage of infection.

__Clinical Latent Infection:__ In some people, persistent swelling of lymph nodes occurs during clinical latent HIV. Otherwise, there are no specific signs and symptoms. HIV remains in the body, however, as free virus and in infected white blood cells. Clinical latent infection typically lasts eight to 10 years. A few people stay in this stage even longer, but others progress to more-severe disease much sooner.

__Early Symptomatic HIV Infection:__ As the virus continues to multiply and destroy immune cells, you may develop mild infections or chronic symptoms such as:
 * Fever
 * Fatigue
 * Swollen lymph nodes — often one of the first signs of HIV infection
 * Diarrhea
 * Weight loss
 * Cough and shortness of breath

__Progression to AIDS:__ If you receive no treatment for your HIV infection, the disease typically progresses to AIDS in about 10 years. By the time AIDS develops, your immune system has been severely damaged, making you susceptible to opportunistic infections — diseases that wouldn't trouble a person with a healthy immune system. The signs and symptoms of some of these infections may include:


 * Soaking night sweats
 * Shaking chills or fever higher than 100 F (38 C) for several weeks
 * Cough and shortness of breath
 * Chronic diarrhea
 * Persistent white spots or unusual lesions on your tongue or in your mouth
 * Headaches
 * Persistent, unexplained fatigue
 * Blurred and distorted vision
 * Weight loss
 * Skin rashes or bumps

Staff, Mayo Clinic. "Definition." //Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research//, 11 Aug. 2012. Web. 07 Mar. 2013.


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Analogies:
HIV is to AIDS as black lung is to smokers. HIV is like freckles once you have it you can't get rid of it.

Mnemonics:

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In the News:
[|Teens, Especially Blacks, Have Reduced HIV Risks] American kids are mostly doing a better job of protecting themselves from [|HIV], the virus that causes [|AIDS], according to a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In particular, black high school students have dramatically reduced sexual behaviors that can lead to HIV infection over the past 20 years, helping to narrow the gap in risky behaviors between them and white students.

[|HIV Risk Factors Vary Between People living in the U.S. and Non-U.S. Residents] At a JAMA media briefing during the international [|AIDS] Conference, Professor H. Irene Hall, Ph.D., from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta presented findings of a new characteristics study of HIV-positive US residents who were born outside the country, which demonstrated that in comparison to HIV positive individuals born in the U.S., Hispanics or Asians are more likely to have contracted the virus, whilst a higher percentage of HIV infections were due to heterosexual contact.

[|Benefits of HIV Drugs Rise, But Less Than Previously Believed] The percentage of HIV patients taking antiretroviral drugs who experienced the full benefit of the drugs jumped from 45 percent of 72 percent during the past decade, a figure that is lower than previous estimates. The findings, considered important for HIV prevention efforts, since patients whose virus is in tight control are less likely to transmit the infection to others, are published this week in JAMA by a team of researchers led by the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The issue's publication coincides with AIDS 2012, the annual international AIDS conference, being held in the United States for the first in over 20 years this week in Washington, D.C.

[|HIV Advisory Board Honors Edward King for Nearly 25 Years of Service to HIV and Individuals Living With HIV] Since graduating from Oxford University in the United Kingdom, Mr. King has been on the front lines of the epidemic, volunteering, providing information, creating educational programs, and leading innovation in the design of cutting-edge interactive online approaches to medical education that have enabled HIV-positive individuals and their clinicians to stay informed on advances in HIV treatment as they have evolved.

[|Drug Resistant HIV On the Rise In Africa] Since the roll-out of antiretroviral therapy (ART) almost ten years ago, drug-resistant HIV has increased significantly in parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, researchers have found.