Sexual Health >> STIS >> HIV/AIDS
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What is HIV/AIDS?
Human Immunodeficiency Virus is the virus that causes Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. The virus is passed from an infected person to another person through blood-to-blood contact, sexual contact or from mother to infant during pregnancy, the birth process or breast feeding.
HIV attacks certain types of white blood cells, primarily T4 cells commonly known as T-cells and macrophages, which are crucial to the normal functioning of the immune system. The disruption of these cells causes the breakdown in the immune system that characterizes AIDS.
AIDS is an illness that damages a person's ability to fight off disease, leaving the body open to attack from unusual types of cancer and from infections that the body's immune system could ordinarily fight. These types of infections are known as opportunistic infections because they take advantage of a weakened immune system in order to cause illness. AIDS is not a single disease; rather it is a collection of symptoms caused by opportunistic infections and cancers. Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia and Kaposi's sarcoma, once a rare type of cancer, have been the most common causes of death in people with AIDS in the United States.
Where did HIV originate?
We still do not know the answer to that question. Scientists have several theories about the origin of HIV, but none have been proven. The earliest known case of HIV is from a blood sample collected in 1959 from a man in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo; however, the source of his infection is not known. Genetic analysis of his blood sample suggests that HIV may have stemmed from a single virus in the late 1940s or early 1950s.
We do know that the virus has existed in the United States since at least the mid to late 1970s. From 1979 to 1981 rare types of pneumonia, cancer, and other illnesses, not usually found in people with healthy immune systems, were being reported by doctors in Los Angeles and New York among a number of gay male patients.
In 1982, public health officials began to use the term acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, or AIDS, to describe the occurrences of opportunistic infections, Kaposi's sarcoma, and pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in previously healthy men. Formal tracking of AIDS cases in the United States also began in 1982 and by 1983, scientists had isolated the HIV virus as the cause of AIDS.
Is it common?
Through December 2000, a total of 774,467 cases of AIDS in the United States have been reported to the Centers for Disease Control. Because many people contract the virus and do not know they are infected, the CDC estimates that between 800,000 and 900,000 or one out of every 300 people are living with HIV or AIDS in the United States.
How is it transmitted?
This virus is passed from an infected person to another person through blood-to-blood contact, sexual contact or mother-to-infant contact. These body fluids have been proven to spread HIV:
- Other body fluids containing blood
HIV enters the body through cuts in the skin, open sores, tiny tears in the mucous membranes of the mouth, rectum or vaginal and the blood by a needle. It is generally accepted that the virus is transmitted through direct exposure to contaminated bodily fluids that have not been exposed to the air. HIV is commonly spread by:
- Unprotected sexual intercourse with someone who has the virus
- HIV-infected blood, semen or vaginal secretions getting into open wounds or sores
- Sharing needles or syringes with someone who has the virus
- Being deeply punctured with a needle or surgical instrument contaminated with the virus
- Passing from a woman to her infant during pregnancy, birth or breast feeding
- Receiving transfusions of blood products donated by someone who has the virus. The risk of transmitting HIV by a screened blood transfusion is practically nonexistent since the United States blood supply is screened for HIV and is believed to be very safe.
HIV cannot go through unbroken skin. In comparison to the flu and common cold viruses, HIV is quite fragile and will die rather quickly if exposed to air. HIV is not transmitted through:
- Saliva, tears, urine or sweat
- Contact with public toilets or drinking fountains
- Shaking hands, giving hugs or sharing a cup
In order to assess your risk in intimate activities, consider these factors:
- Very low risk - no reported cases:
- Masturbation or mutual masturbation
- Touching or massage
- Erotic massage or body rubbing
- Casual kissing
- Oral sex on a man with a condom
- Oral sex on a woman with a dental dam
- Low risk - minimal reported cases:
- Deep kissing
- Unprotected oral sex
- Vaginal sex with a condom or female condom
- Anal sex with a condom
- High risk - many reported cases:
- Vaginal sex without a condom
- Anal sex without a condom
What are the symptoms?
It is possible to be infected with HIV and to transmit the virus without showing symptoms of illness. Many people do not develop any symptoms when they first become infected with HIV. Some people, however, have a flu-like illness within a month or two after exposure to the virus. They may have symptoms including:
- Enlarged lymph nodes easily felt in the neck and groin
These symptoms usually disappear within a week to a month and are often mistaken for the flu. The only way to determine whether you are infected is to be tested for HIV. The following symptoms may develop after years of being infected with HIV and may signal that the infection has progressed to AIDS:
- Recurring fever or profuse night sweats
- Profound and unexplained fatigue
- Swollen lymph glands in the armpits, groin or neck
- Diarrhea that lasts for more than a week
- Bruising more easily than normal
- White spots or unusual blemishes on the tongue, in the mouth or in the throat
- Recurring yeast infections
- Red, brown, pink or purplish blotches on or under the skin or inside the mouth, nose or eyelids
- Numbness or pain in the hands or feet
- Loss of muscle control and reflexes, paralysis or loss of muscular strength
- Memory loss, depression and other neurological disorders.
Because these symptoms may not manifest themselves for several years, their absence is not an indicator of HIV status. Only a medical provider can diagnose HIV/AIDS based on specific criteria established by the CDC.
How soon after exposure to HIV will symptoms appear?
More persistent or severe symptoms may not surface for 10 years or more after HIV first enters the body in adults and within two years in children born with HIV. This period of asymptomatic infection is variable and can depend on many factors, including a person's health status and their health-related behaviors. Some people may begin to have symptoms in as soon as a few months, whereas others may be symptom-free for more than 10 years. During the asymptomatic period, HIV actively infects and kills cells of the immune system. HIV's effect is seen most obviously by measuring the levels of T cells in the blood, the immune system's key infection fighters. The virus initially disables or destroys these cells without causing symptoms.
How is it diagnosed?
HIV
The tests commonly used to detect HIV infection look for the presence of antibodies that fight HIV. According to the CDC, most people infected with HIV develop antibodies against the virus within three months of infection, the average time being 25 days. The length of time between infection and when there are enough antibodies to be detected by the HIV test is often called the window period. If an HIV test is negative three months after a high risk experience, an individual should consult their medical provider to determine if the test should be repeated. However, CDC studies indicate that it is highly unlikely that a HIV infection would go unrecognized for prolonged periods over six months.
Students at Texas State can choose to have an anonymous HIV test performed at the Student Health Center. During your appointment, you can ask your medical provider about testing costs and when you can expect your results. Other testing sites in San Marcos and Texas can be accessed by clicking here for locations and telephone numbers.
The CDC Information Line can also provide more information and referrals. Their telephone numbers are:
1-800-CDC-INFO (1-800-232-4636) English and Spanish
1-888-232-6348 TTY
7 days a week, 24 hours a day
AIDS
An HIV-infected person receives a diagnosis of AIDS after developing one of the CDC-defined AIDS indicator illnesses. However, studies have revealed that most people infected with HIV carry the virus for years before noticeable AIDS symptoms to develop. An HIV infected person who has not had any serious illnesses can receive an AIDS diagnosis on the basis of certain blood tests (T cell counts). The loss of T cells is a very strong predicator in the development of AIDS.
What is the difference between confidential and anonymous testing?
Confidential testing for STIs, including HIV, means that the test results will be part of your medical record. This information cannot be accessed by anyone other than you and your medical providers unless you give written permission to release your information. Anonymous testing means that you never provide your name. You are given a number or a code and no one besides you and your testing counselor will ever know your results.
What should I do if I test positive for HIV?
Consult a medical provider experienced in treating HIV/AIDS. Discuss the use of anti-viral therapies to slow the progress of the infection. You should also take these precautionary measures:
- Protect your sex partners from HIV by abstaining from sex or by practicing safer sex.
- Inform past and current sex partners so that they can be tested.
- Do not share needles or works (injection equipment).
- Find psychological support with a therapist or join a support group for people with HIV.
- Find information and social and legal support from AIDS service organizations.
- Maintain a strong immune system with a healthy lifestyle and regular medical exams.
- Always inform medical providers so that you can receive appropriate care.
How is an HIV infection treated?
Today there are medical treatments that can slow the rate at which HIV weakens the immune system. Drugs approved to treat HIV infection are called anti-retroviral drugs because they attack HIV, which is a retrovirus. Once inside the cell, HIV uses specific enzymes to survive. Anti-retroviral drugs work by interfering with the virus's ability to use these enzymes. Anti-retroviral drugs fall into two categories:
- Reverse transcriptase inhibitors interfere with the enzyme reverse transcriptase, which HIV needs in order to make copies of itself.
- Protease inhibitors interfere with the protease enzyme HIV uses to produce infectious viral particles.
In addition to the anti-retroviral drugs, there are other treatments that can prevent or cure some of the illnesses associated with HIV/AIDS. As with other diseases, early detection offers more options for treatment and preventative care. Unfortunately, the drugs currently available cannot cure an HIV infection. HIV can become resistant to any one drug and even a combination of drugs cannot suppress the virus indefinitely. However, scientists continue to develop new drugs and treatments that help many people infected with HIV live longer and healthier lives.
Links you can use
Health Education Resource Center (512) 245-2309
Walk-ins and appointments are welcome to obtain confidential answers to health questions. Located in suite 201 of the Student Health Center at the corner of Sessom and Tomas Rivera Drive.
Student Health Center (512) 245-2167
Located at the corner of Sessom and Tomas Rivera Drive.
Confidential information and care is available by appointment with a physician or nurse. There are no fees for medical care at the Student Health Center. However, there may be fees incurred if laboratory tests, medications, specialist or emergency hospital care is needed.
National Prevention Information Network
Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention
Frequently Asked Questions
United States Department of Health and Human Services
Texas Department of State Health Services
STD Resource - A Guide to Sexually Transmitted Diseases
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Last Modified:
May 31, 2006
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