HIV is the abbreviation used for the human immunodeficiency virus. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). AIDS is a preventable and life-threatening disease. However, new treatments allow people who are infected with HIV to live many years.
HIV attacks the body's immune system. The immune system is the body's defense against infections. With time, HIV weakens your ability to fight off serious infections and some cancers. When this happens, HIV infection becomes AIDS.
The infection-fighting cells of the immune system are a type of white blood cell called CD4 cells or T-helper cells. Months to years after infection with HIV, the virus begins to destroy the CD4 cells. HIV infection becomes AIDS when so many of the CD4 cells are destroyed that you lose your ability to fight off serious infections or tumors. Various infections called opportunistic infections develop. They are called opportunistic because they take advantage of the weakened immune system. These infections would not normally cause severe or fatal health problems. However, when you have AIDS, the infections and tumors are more serious and are harder to treat successfully.
HIV is not spread through the air, in food, or by casual social contact such as shaking hands or hugging. The virus is passed on only when blood or sexual secretions, such as semen, enter another person's body. HIV can also be spread to babies during pregnancy and by the breast milk of an infected mother. You can get infected with HIV through:
People of all ages and both genders are at risk for AIDS. The following groups have the highest risk for HIV infection and the development of AIDS:
The symptoms of HIV infection and AIDS are usually the symptoms of the other diseases that are able to attack the body because of the infection:
Tests for HIV are done in 2 steps. The first test is a screening test of your blood or saliva. If this test is negative, it usually means that you don't have HIV. However, it is possible to have a negative test if you have been just recently infected. If you have a negative test result but you are at high risk for infection, you may need to have another test in 3 to 6 months.
A positive test result means that you are probably infected with HIV. A second, more specific blood test is then done to confirm the results.
Once you have confirmed positive HIV test results, you must have a thorough medical exam. The exam includes discussing your history of sexual practices and infections. Your healthcare provider will also ask about any history of drug abuse.
You will have some lab tests. Comparing the results of the physical exam and these first lab tests with results of tests done weeks or months later can help your healthcare provider know how the virus is affecting your body. It can also help your provider know how well any medicines you may be taking are working.
You will be tested for certain infections that can worsen quickly when you have HIV, such as tuberculosis (TB), syphilis, and hepatitis B. These diseases can also pose a serious risk to others.
HIV-positive women should have a Pap test according to the schedule recommended by their healthcare provider (usually every 6 to 12 months). The HPV virus, which causes cervical cancer, can spread and cause problems much more quickly if you are infected with HIV. Pap tests can detect HPV before it has caused cancer of the cervix or when the cancer is early and can be cured.
Your treatment depends on when you were infected with HIV, your test results, and whether you have symptoms. Several different types of medicines are used to treat HIV/AIDS. There is much ongoing research to find ever better treatments. Currently, your treatment may include:
In addition to being treated with medicines that work to keep the virus from making more viruses, it is very important to follow the other recommended treatments for HIV/AIDS infection, such as:
Treatment with antiretroviral drugs and possibly other medicines will depend on how low your CD4 cell count is and how high your viral load is.
Antiretroviral medicines can slow down the disease, but they are not a cure. Many new drug treatments and combinations are being prescribed or studied.
Vision problems are often an early sign of opportunistic infection in HIV-positive individuals. Tell your healthcare provider promptly about any eye symptoms.
Getting care in an office or clinic that offers case management is perhaps the most important part of treatment. This means a team of providers will be giving you care. Your care will be coordinated by a case manager. The case manager helps you communicate with all who are caring for you. Other advantages include:
The full effects of AIDS may not appear until 5 to 10 years after you are first infected with HIV. Although in past years AIDS was almost always a fatal disease, new treatments have allowed people to live longer with the disease. Many people with AIDS in the US are leading productive lives 10 to 15 years after their diagnosis.
If you are in a high-risk group but have not tested positively for HIV, see your healthcare provider regularly. He or she will check your health and recommend how often your blood should be tested for HIV. You should talk with your provider about ways you might be able to lower your risk.
If you are HIV positive:
Ask your healthcare provider:
Make sure you know when you should come back for a checkup.
Practice safe sex to keep from getting infected, or to prevent spreading the infection to others:
In addition:
If you are HIV positive:
If you have been exposed to HIV, antiretroviral drugs may be used to prevent infection. The treatment must be started as soon as possible and no more than 72 hours after the exposure. This preventive treatment is not recommended for people who are often at risk of exposure to HIV, such as people who have sex partners with HIV.
Researchers are learning more about HIV. As a result, recommended treatments change often. Ways you can seek up-to-date information and care are:
CDC-INFO
Phone: 1-800-232-4636
AIDSinfo
Web site: http://aidsinfo.nih.gov
Phone: 1-800-HIV-0440 (1-800-448-0440)
CDC National Prevention Information Network
Web site: http://www.cdcnpin.org
Phone: 800-458-5231
