Human Immunodeficiency Virus

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

i. HIV is a virus that kills cells in our immune system, which protects us from

AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome) is defined by the Mayo Clinic as "A chronic, potentially life-threatening condition which is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV damages the immune system, and interferes with the ability the body has to fight the disease causing organism" (Mayo Clinic, 2014). HIV is an infection transmitted sexually. Another mode of transmission for HIV is by exposure to infected blood, or it could also be transmitted from the mother to the unborn child during the course of pregnancy, at childbirth or through breastfeeding. It may take several years for the HIV virus to weaken the immune system

Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, or AIDS, is a disease transmitted through blood and bodily fluids, and is caused by HIV or human immunodeficiency virus ("History of AIDS Up to 1986."). Did you know that many people considered AIDS a gay disease because it was thought that it only affected homosexual males, mainly those with several sexual partners or those who used drugs ("History of AIDS Up to 1986.")? Before AIDS had a name it was called a number of different things (“HIV and AIDS in the USA”). AIDS is important to world history because it helped people become aware of a disease that could affect them.

“AIDS, or acquired immune deficiency syndrome, is the most deadly and, apparently, the most recent of all sexually transmitted diseases. As mentioned earlier, it is caused by HIV, or human immunodeficiency virus.” (Little 75) It infects the DNA sequence, and makes white blood cells useless. “There are two serious diseases most often seen in AIDS patients; Kaposi’s Saicoma, and pneumonia.”(Taylor 15)

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infects the cells of the immune system. In particular, HIV attacks and destroys the T helper lymphocytes, or T-cells, which are crucial to the immune system and immune response. (These cells are also called CD4-positive lymphocytes because HIV uses the protein CD4, present on the surface of the cell, to attach itself and pry its way into the cell.) Each day, your body produces millions of CD4+ T-cells to help maintain your immunity and fight off invading viruses and germs. Once HIV is in your body, the virus is able to copy itself over and over, increasing its ability to kill CD4+ T-cells. Soon, infected cells outnumber healthy T-cells.

HIV and AIDS are sometimes used interchangeably, although there is a significant difference, and some HIV positive individuals will never develop Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Testing HIV positive means there are antibodies present in the system. HIV is classified into two phases: symptomatic and asymptomatic. Individuals show signs of a compromised immune system during the symptomatic phase, although with treatment advances, many are living asymptomatically. The progress of the illness can often be evaluated by looking at one’s CD4 and viral load

HIV / AIDS The human immunodeficiency virus. The virus that causes AIDS, damages or destroys the cells of the immune system, making it more susceptible to opportunistic infections that the body normally eliminates.

What is HIV/AIDS? HIV stands for “human immunodeficiency syndrome,” while AIDS stands for “acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.” AIDS is the final stage of HIV, which causes severe damage to the immune system. In our world today, over 35.3

AIDS is the disease caused by human immunodeficiency virus type 1, or HIV-1 (referred to as HIV). HIV belongs to the retrovirus family, a group of viruses that have the ability to use cell 's ' machinery to replicate. HIV attacks the immune system by damaging or killing a specific type of white blood cell in the body called a T-lymphocyte, also called a CD4+ or T-helper cell. T-lymphocytes help the immune system perform its important task of fighting diseases in the body caused by invading germs. As a result of HIV infection, the immune system becomes weakened and the body has trouble battling certain infections caused by bacteria, viruses, parasites, and fungi. Many of these infections are highly unusual in people with healthy immune systems. They are called opportunistic infections because they take advantage of a weakened immune system. People with HIV disease not only are more likely to contract these infections, they are more likely to have them repeatedly and to become much more sick from them.

In 1982 CDC described AIDS as “A disease at least moderately predictive of a defect in cell mediated immunity, occurring in a person with no known cause for diminished resistance to that disease” (History of HIV and AIDS.)

HIV disease has various symptoms which includes; fever that persists, swollen of the lymph glands, fatigue, headaches and fever. It is sometimes hard to notice these symptoms; however, the virus seems to be dormant in persons' systems for a long period of time. The virus after some times will continue to weaken the immune systems by attacking their cells making one to start developing an infection that might at the end results in a diagnosis of Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

AIDS affects everyone in different ways, some people have no symptoms, and other people have many symptoms. When living with AIDS, people have to take special care of themselves, they have to make sure they take their medicines correctly, because if they do not it can weaken their immune system, then the medicines become less effective. HIV has different stages that is goes through as the infection gets worse, AIDS being the last stage (Stages of HIV, 2014). A person is considered to have aids when their t-cell count is less than 200 (HIV/AIDS, 2014).

HIV- This is the virus that destroys the human immune system leaving the body defenseless hence vulnerable to other infections.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that can lead to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). (Kim et al., 2010). It is a disease in which the body immune system weakens progressively,