There are many diseases linked with HIV/AIDS. Many of these diseases are due to opportunistic infections that invade the body when the immune system is compromised. According to MedlinePlus, AIDS is the most advanced stage of HIV infection, and the disease may be spread from person to person by unprotected sex, needle sharing or contact with the blood of an infected person. AIDS-related diseases range in severity, depending on the immune status of the infected person.
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis is a disease linked with HIV/AIDS. According to Family Health International--a public health and development organization dedicated to improving the lives of vulnerable populations--tuberculosis is an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, an infectious agent that usually targets the lung but can affect other parts of the body too. FHI states that tuberculosis can be a stand-alone disease, although a person infected with HIV has a significantly greater risk of developing active tuberculosis. While tuberculosis is curable, in many parts of the world poor detection of the disease--along with a lack of adherence to prescribed treatment plans--make tuberculosis the No. 1 cause of death among people with HIV. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, anybody who is infected with HIV should be tested for tuberculosis, and everybody who is infected with tuberculosis should undergo preventive therapy to keep tuberculosis disease from progressing.
Candidiasis
Candidiasis is a disease linked with HIV/AIDS. The University of California-San Francisco Medical Center states that candidiasis is the most common HIV-related fungus infection. The University of Maryland Medical Center notes that 90 percent of all people with HIV/AIDS will develop candida infections at some point during the disease process.
Candidiasis can affect the entire body, although it usually manifests in a person's mouth or vagina. In a person with AIDS, candidiasis may develop in her esophagus, trachea, bronchi or lungs. An overgrowth of candida fungi in the vagina can cause the following signs and symptoms: vaginal irritation, itching, burning and a thick white vaginal discharge. Signs and symptoms of a candida fungi overgrowth in the mouth include white patches on the gums, tongue or mouth lining, pain or discomfort, dysphagia or difficulty swallowing and anorexia or a loss of appetite.
Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy
Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy or PML is a disease linked with HIV/AIDS. According to the Merck Manuals Online Medical Library, PML is caused by reactivation of the JC virus--a type of human polyomavirus named after a patient with PML. PML manifests in people with compromised cell-mediated immunity; the disease is characterized by progressive damage to the myelin sheaths surrounding nerve cell axons, neurological deficits--including muscle weakness or paralysis, impaired vision and speech and cognitive degeneration--and death within one year of onset. According to the Merck, highly active antiretroviral therapy may limit the progression of PML among AIDS patients. Common symptoms associated with PML include clumsiness, language impairment, an inability to articulate clearly and partial loss of vision.
