The diagnosis of HIV is a two-step process. The initial screening tests, including ELISA and the rapid tests, are highly sensitive and can detect very low concentrations of anti-HIV antibodies. However, these tests are less specific and can lead...
If you think you have put yourself at risk for HIV, it is important to get tested. The Body states that about 180,000 to 280,000 Americans do not know they are infected. You can go to your doctor, call your local health department or find a...
Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, or AIDS, is the final stage of a serious and potentially fatal infection of the immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus or HIV. There is no cure for HIV infection and AIDS. However, with...
The fluid portion of the blood normally contains some amount of proteins, which fall into two categories: albumin or globulin. These proteins are important for the tissues throughout the body as albumin prevents fluids from leaking out of blood...
If you are sexually active, you and your partner need to be tested for sexually transmitted diseases, such as the human immunodeficiency virus or HIV, on a regular basis. Three major kinds of HIV tests are available to choose from: standard, rapid...
Many people still won't go to their own doctor to be tested for HIV. The reasons are many, but generally it's because you don't want to include HIV testing in your medical record, you may not have a personal doctor or you may fear local reaction...
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a communicable disease that attacks the immune system. Treatment advances now allow many people with HIV to live for decades. The person with HIV should exercise good self-care, including scheduling regular...
Human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, is a virus that replicates quickly within the human body and devastates the immune system, leaving the body open for opportunistic infections. HIV has infected humans in record numbers since 1981 when the...
Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is the final stage of infection caused by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The diagnosis of HIV involves an initial screening test followed by a confirmatory test. Most HIV diagnosis methods look for...
According to a July 2010 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 21 percent of the 1 million Americans living with HIV do not know they are ill. Aside from flu-like symptoms shortly after exposure, untreated...
Of the estimated 1.1 million Americans infected with HIV, approximately 232,000 do not know they have the virus, reports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). HIV testing remains a keystone activity in the effort to provide health...
AIDS, which stands for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, is a chronic, life-threatening disease caused by HIV, or the human immunodeficiency virus. The Mayo Clinic states that approximately 39.5 million people globally have HIV. The virus...
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a communicable disease that can affect women of any age. The Sexual Health Network reports that up to 90 percent of people experience symptoms during the first few weeks after virus transmission. These...
According to the March of Dimes, more than 90 percent of the approximately 9,000 U.S. children diagnosed with AIDS since 1985 contracted the virus from their mother during pregnancy or birth. Preventative measures can greatly reduce a pregnant...
Sometimes used synonymously, the human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, or AIDS, are distinctly different conditions even though they have a cause and effect relationship. The possibility exists that a person...
Many people remain symptom-free for years while the human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, grows and slowly destroys the body's immunity, eventually morphing into AIDS. Identifying HIV or AIDS based on symptoms alone is challenging, because many of...
Sexually-transmitted diseases, or STDs, are diseases that are spread and contracted through sexual contact. Many can cause serious complications or health problems, so it's important to get tested for STDs if you suspect that you may have been...
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a communicable disease that can have fatal consequences. The virus replicates within the body and gradually harms the immune system, causing victims to develop serious infections. People with human...
The immune system begins to produce antibodies in an attempt to fight the HIV virus as soon as the virus enters the body. HIV/AIDS tests screens for and diagnoses an infection by either detecting the antibodies, or by testing virus levels in the...
AIDS, or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, is the last phase of HIV, according to the Mayo Clinic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines AIDS as having a positive HIV-antibody test and either a CD4 lymphocyte count of below 200...
Human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, causes the chronic condition known as AIDS; developing in the late stages of HIV infection. According to the World Health Organization, in 2008 worldwide incidence of HIV was 33.4 million people infected. In...
The human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, causes AIDS by slowly attacking the immune system and leaving the body susceptible to potentially fatal infections and diseases. HIV and AIDS symptoms vary, depending on the phase of infection, and many...
Sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs, are infectious illnesses transmitted primarily through intimate sexual contact, including vaginal and anal intercourse and oral sex. Bacteria, viruses and parasites cause different types of STDs. Symptoms of...
