Acquired immune deficiency syndrome is a life-threatening disease caused by HIV, or the human immunodeficiency virus. The HIV virus spreads through sexual contact and the transfer of blood and other fluids between people. A person with HIV may not contract full-blown AIDS for several years. AIDS is a chronic disease that damages the body's immune system in such a way that it cannot fight off bacteria and other diseases.
Contraction
Persons contract HIV through unprotected sexual contact. Sexual intercourse does not have to occur for the virus to be passed from one person to another. Having oral sex, kissing someone with lesions in his mouth or with bleeding gums are possible ways of transferring the disease. Another possible path is through blood transfusions. Ryan White was a hemopheliac who contracted the disease through a tainted blood transfusion.
Symptoms
When a person first contracts the HIV virus, symptoms usually resemble those of the flu. Headaches, fever and swollen lymph nodes are possible symptoms. Sore throat and rash may also accompany the fever. As the disease progresses and changes from HIV to AIDS, patients may have diarrhea, weight loss and a chronic cough. In some patients where the disease has progressed significantly, high fevers, bouts of pneumonia and low white blood cell counts may become issues.
Treatment
Even though no known cure exists for HIV/AIDS, certain drugs can enhance the quality of life of AIDS patients. Retrovir and Videx are anti-retroviral drugs; they block the replication of the HIV enzyme reverse transcriptase. Viracept and Invirase are protease inhibitors; they disrupt HIV enzymes further into the replication process, targeting the HIV protease enzyme. Fuzeon is a fusion inhibitor that helps suppress resistant strains of the HIV virus.
Complications
As AIDS progresses, the body's immunity becomes weaker and weaker. The patient becomes less capable of fighting off even the smallest bouts of infection. Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, or PCP, is one of the most common complications and in some cases can be fatal. Once the immune system has been compromised, bacterial infections, viruses, fungal infections and cancers can wreak havoc on the body. Parasites may also cause problems. Neurological diseases may develop if other complications are left untreated.
Misconceptions
Even though AIDS has been around since the 1980s, misconceptions are common. AIDS is not restricted to the homosexual community; anyone can contract HIV and AIDS. Blood banks have diligent screening procedures to ensure that tainted blood does not get into the general blood supply. Despite these procedures, accidents do happen, and people may become exposed to blood-borne pathogens in other ways.
HIV is also spread through sexual contact between heterosexual partners; unprotected sex is one of the most common ways of transferring the disease. It is doubtful that AIDS is spread through tears or saliva.
