Hiv And Aids : A Deadly Virus Essay

HIV or the Human Deficiency virus is like other viruses including the flu, but the one thing that makes this virus so different than any other is that the body is unable to clear this one out completely. Once someone is infected, there is no cure. Over time, HIV can also hide or mask itself in the body's cells. The cells within a person's body that fight off infection are called CD4 cells or T cells. HIV attacks these cells and copies or replicates itself inside these cells, then destroys them. HIV over time will destroy so many of these cells that the body is unable to fight off infection anymore. When this starts happening, AIDS or Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome happens which is the final stage

In the 1980s, a mysterious disease began to take the lives of Americans. With the cause unknown, a fear grew among Americans. An unusually high rate of people was becoming sick with strange and rare diseases. When experimental treatments failed to work, people died. This mysterious disease is what we now know as HIV–Human Immunodeficiency Virus. In the past thirty-five years, the HIV has taken many turns in history. Although we do not hear about HIV and AIDS now, it is still a prevalent issue in the United States and in the world.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus, or better known as HIV, has been in the United States since the mid to late 1970’s. HIV, if left untreated can lead to Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome or AIDS. Once HIV is contracted it is a life-long disease and as of today there is no cure for the virus. The virus works by destroying CD4, or T cells, and eventually destroys enough to break down the body’s ability to fight off infection and disease. If left untreated the virus will break down the CD4 cells and once these cell levels drop below 200 cells per cubic millimeters of blood you are then considered to have developed AIDS (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014). The virus is thought to of come from West

The AIDS epidemic, from its beginning, has elicited a variety of responses from individuals and governments alike. Because the disease was originally shrouded in such mystery, many did not know how to react, which fostered a default fear of the unknown response. This attitude lead to many governments adopting a denialist policy, countless individuals living and eventually dying alone due to an unwillingness to report their illness for fear of consequence or prejudice, and this allowed the HIV virus flourish. Several countries responded efficiently and effectively to the presence of the HIV virus in their midst, while other countries maintained an attitude of ignorance. The latter position contributed to a huge expanse of the HIV epidemic

Most of us know about H.I.V, but not all of us fully understand all of the aspects of this disease. Not only are there physical aspects, but also physiological aspects.

Did you know that if a straight line of pennies was made down any given road, extending one mile, there would be over a hundred thousand dollars worth of change on the street? Dimes? Well over a million dollars. How about something that hits closer to home, something like lives? In 1996, when the AIDS pandamenic was at its peak, a memorial quilt made of individual panels about six feet by three feet in size was displayed in Washington D.C. Each square of the quilt represented a single victim whose life was claimed by the disease. Though many of the panels give only the victim’s name and birth/death dates, others included more personal items such as a pair of jeans, a teddy bear, or even a poem. Though there

This ability allows HIV to infect and destroy CD4 cells, which have an important role in the immune system and consequently weakens the host’s immunity.

Imagine a world where an innocent child is given HIV due to mother to child transmission. Imagine a world where a father cannot play football on an autumn’s afternoon with his son because he constantly feels a lack of energy. Imagine a world where for months straight one has a reoccurring yeast infection. And lastly, imagine a world where one cannot remember one’s very own mother’s name due to short term memory loss. Unfortunately, there is no need to imagine for all of the above are actual possibilities when living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus. What is HIV? According to www.aids.gov Human Immunodeficiency Virus is “a lot like other viruses, including those that cause the flu or the common cold. But there is an important

Epidemiologist: This role involves learning about the pattern and incidence of how the disease is transmitted and works to help find community prevention solutions. The portals of entry for HIV: skin via Injection or trauma, mucous membranes of mouth, penis, vagina and rectum during sexual activity, placenta to child during pregnancy. Portals of exit: blood, semen, pre-ejaculate, vaginal secretions and breast milk. Reservoirs: human blood, semen and vaginal secretions. The mode(s) of transmission: unprotected sex exposing mucous membranes to infected fluids, injection using contaminated needle, infusion from contaminated blood transfusion, accidental prick from contaminated needle, having an open wound come into contact with infected blood; virus passing from mother to baby through placenta, to baby through breast milk, or via interaction with vaginal secretions during birth. However HIV cannot be transmitted through saliva, tears or urine (Merck Manual, 2003).

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the human immune system, your body’s means of defense. The virus attacks specific viral defense cells, known as CD4+. As the disease spreads and attacks more CD4+ cells, your body no longer maintains its’ ability to fight of infections and diseases which leads to the death of the host. The final stage of HIV is known as AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome). During this stage of the virus, the host gets infected and sick easily and can no longer fight off infections.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is an incurable illness that can lead to Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) - a life-threatening condition (CDC.gov). According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 1, 218, 4000 people aged 13 and older are living with HIV in the United States.

Once an entry is initiated and completed, HIV has the ability to replicate into thousands of copies of itself by using the host cells resources and the RNA. The RNA, which is two stranded, converts into DNA through an enzyme titled reverse transcriptase. When the DNA is set within the host’s genome, it allows replication to occur. Furthermore, the new viral copies are made and the host cell ruptures and dies. As a result, the multiple viruses are released and continue to infect more of the T cells, weakening the immune system. The normal count of T cells is about 800-1200 cells/mm3. For a while, T cells can be initially replaced, but HIV infection is a slowly progressive disease and soon enough the body becomes exhausted, leading to a decline in T-cell count. There are several prevention measures that can be taken in order to avoid getting HIV. Those include

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is a virus that mainly attacks the T-Cell which are used in the immune system to fight off infections. HIV left untreated leads to the disease AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). When T-Cell accounts are sparse, the body is predisposed to getting infections. (aids.gov) HIV is transmitted parenteral or sexually. (Palmisano, Vella) Around 1 and 4 people living with HIV in the United States are women. In 2014 women made up 19% (8,328) of estimate HIV diagnosis in the United States. (cdc.gov) In the 19% of women infected with HIV, many of whom are mothers, affects the life expectancy of infants during the pregnancy, birth, and gestational period.

HIV is the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS. A member of a group of viruses called retroviruses, HIV infects human cells and uses the energy and nutrients provided by those cells to grow and reproduce. AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is a disease in which the body's immune system breaks down and is unable to fight off certain infections, known as "opportunistic infections," and other illnesses that take advantage of a weakened immune system. When a person is infected with HIV, the virus enters the body and lives and multiplies primarily in the white blood cells. These are the immune cells that normally protect us from disease.

HIV, or the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, is a virus which damages and kills cells of the immune system. It attacks the T-cells, key cells of the immune system, and uses them to make copies of itself. After being infected with the virus it progressively interferes and eventually destroys the immune system's ability to fight the anti-genes. HIV may develop into the syndrome AIDS, the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome. HIV is an STD - a sexually transmitted disease - and therefore most commonly it is spread through sexual contact, and the virus mainly enters the body through the penis, mouth, lining of the vagina or vulva during sexual activity. HIV can also be spread through sharing syringes or needles with someone who is infected with the