The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that in the United States, about 1.1 million people had HIV or AIDS by the end of 2006. HIV, or human immunodeficiency virus, passes to people through sexual contact, needle sharing or contaminated blood. The last stage of HIV is AIDS, which MedlinePlus points out is the fifth most common cause of death in Americans aged 25 to 44.
Weakened Immune System
When people become infected with HIV, the virus starts weakening the immune system. MedlinePlus points out that some people may not have symptoms when they first contract HIV, though asymptomatic HIV can last for 10 years. If patients do have early symptoms of HIV, they can resemble the flu, such as a fever and sore throat. Other symptoms of HIV that result from a weakened immune system include swollen lymph glands, diarrhea, frequent vaginal yeast infections, mouth sores, rashes, headaches and muscle stiffness.
Opportunistic Infections
When patients' immune systems become weaker from AIDS, patients can develop opportunistic infections, which are infections that people with normal immune systems do not get. The weaker immune system also makes HIV and AIDS patients more susceptible to infections that people with a regular immune system can get, such as herpes simplex virus, which can cause sores or brain damage.
MayoClinic.com explains that HIV and AIDS patients can develop one of four types of opportunistic infections: parasitic infections, fungal infections, bacterial infections and viral infections.
If a patient develops a parasitic infection, he can have a toxoplasmosis, which is an infection that attacks every organ and causes seizures and problems walking; or pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, which affects the lungs and causes breathing problems.
Examples of fungal infections include candidiasis and cryptococcal meningitis. Patients with candidiasis can have inflammation of the vagina, tongue, esophagus or mouth, while patients with cryptococcal meningitis have inflammation of the brain and spinal cord membranes.
Bacterial infections that can occur in HIV and AIDS patients include mycobacterium avium complex, bacterial pneumonia, tuberculosis, bacillary angiomatosis and salmonellosis. Mycobacterium avium complex affects the respiratory tract, causing fever and diarrhea. Patients with tuberculosis cough up blood and have a fever. Bacillary angiomatosis causes purplish or bright red skin patches, while salmonellosis causes severe diarrhea and abdominal pain.
If a patient has a viral infection, he may have cytomegalovirus, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, viral hepatitis or human papillomavirus. Cytomegalovirus damages the lungs, eyes and digestive tracts, while progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy infects the brain. Viral hepatitis, which is a liver infection, causes jaundice, abdominal pain and loss of appetite. With human papillomavirus, patients have warts, though women may develop cervical cancer with some strains.
Low Self-Esteem
AVERT, an AIDS charity, explains that the stigmas of HIV and AIDS can affect patients' self-esteem. The stigmas attached to the infections, such as people thinking that patients are irresponsible, can cause serious effects in patients, causing them to feel hopeless or low about themselves. An HIV diagnosis can affect patients' reputation.
Weight Loss
Some AIDS patients may lose a large amount of weight. MayoClinic.com explains that patients lose 10 percent of their body weight. With the weight loss, patients can have fever, diarrhea or chronic weakness.
Neurological Problems
HIV or AIDS patients may have cognitive deficits as the infection worsens. MayoClinic.com notes that the most common neurological problem is HIV dementia. Patients can have cognitive problems such as memory loss and behavioral changes like irritability.
Susceptibility to Cancers
MedlinePlus notes that the immune system weakening causes patients to become susceptible to specific types of cancers, which include non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and Kaposi's sarcoma. With non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, the cancer starts in the white blood cells, with swelling occurring on the lymph nodes in the groin, neck or armpit. A cancer that starts in the blood vessel walls, Kaposi's sarcoma causes pink, purple or red skin, or mouth lesions.
