This year in the United States, 42,000 people will become infected with the virus that causesAIDS.
AIDS is a incurable disease that is the end result of infection by the human immune deficiency virus or HIV. An individual who contracts HIV maybe come sick quickly or can live symptom-free for years. HIV and AIDS are not one and the same. Those with AIDS are infected with HIV but people who are infected HIV do not necessarily have AIDS.
A person has AIDS when their T-cell count falls below a measurement scale of 200. As oppose to the 500 to 1500 in a healthy person. In extremely low,CD4 count means that the person’s immune system is no longer healthy enough to fight off intruding viruses and bacteria. Signs that HIV maybe turning into AIDS include extreme fatigue, rapid weight loss, persistent diarrhea, a high fever and swollen glands in the neck, armpits or groin. Even if a person does not have a low CD4 count, they are still classified as having aids if they contract anyone of 26 opportunistic conditions. These are groups of illnesses that do not generally occur in people with functioning immune systems but do show up in AIDS patients.
Two of these are cancers, one, Kaposi’s sarcoma results from a tumor in the blood vessel walls and appears as the figure in pink or purple lesions on the skin and mouth.
The other cancer, non Hodgkin’s lymphoma originates in the disease fighting blood cells known as lymphocytes. This appears as swelling of the lymph nodes.
Several opportunistic conditions that confirm an AIDS diagnosis stem from invading bacteria like tuberculosis and recurrent bacterial pneumonia.
Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia is a potentially deadly inflammation of the lungs that is one of the most common infections occurring in people with HIV worldwide.
Tuberculosis is the leading opportunistic infection in nations where access to medications is low. It occurs when bacteria infect the lungs and can manifest as coughing with bloody mucus. Sometimes an opportunistic infection can be fungal like candidiasis. When candidiasis causes a white coating to form on the mouth, tongue or vagina this is called thrush.
Although HIV itself is a virus, another virus can enter the body and cause an opportunistic infection. One example is cytomegalovirus or CMV. A Herpes virus that healthy adults fight easily and people with HIV however, the virus causes damages to the body, most notably the eyes. If untreated, CMV can lead to blindness.
Other complications that lead to an Aids diagnosis includes: wasting syndrome, whereby a person looses atleast 10% of their body weight. And AIDS dementia complex where nerve damage causes diminished mental functioning. These conditions and others mean that HIV has progressed to AIDS. While this is disheartening, many modern medications can keep AIDS infections from progressing indefinitely.
If you have HIV, talk to your doctor about diseases that can occur following infection and the best ways to treat them.
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