Thursday 10 May 2012

AIDS/HIV Information

The HIV virus, type one or two is widely known to be the reason for AIDS. HIV breaks down and assaults your T cells so your body is unable to defend itself against different infections. The HIV virus also assaults your peripheral nervous process, this causes nerve and muscle pain, in the feet, legs, and hands.

AIDS is an acronym for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome it causes a destruction of the immune process. It is the most advanced stage of the HIV virus (HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus). AIDS is defined by the Centers for Illness Control and Prevention (CDC) as the presence of a positive HIV antibody check and or more of the illnesses known as opportunistic infections.

HIV is spread through direct contact with semen or blood of an individual that is infected. This can be transferred in plenty of ways the most common is unprotected sexual activity. Other means of infection are infected blood transfusions, sister to kid (at time of birth, or through breast milk), sharing needles with an infected person, and never a healthcare worker that gets pricked with an infected needle.

Often individuals who are infected with HIV have few signs and in some cases there's none. Other times, signs of HIV are confused with other illnesses such as the flu. This may be extreme, with swollen glands in the neck and armpits, tiredness, fever and night sweats. This is where as much as 9 out of ten of the infected individuals will create AIDS. At this point the person may feel healthy and not even know that he/she has the virus. The next stage begins when the immune process starts to break down and the virus becomes more aggressive in damaging white cells. Several glands in the neck and armpits may swell and stay swollen for an extended timeframe without any explanation. As this illness progresses boils or warts may spread over the body. They may also feel tremendously worn out, night sweats, high fevers, chronic diarrhea, and they may lose a substantial amount of their body weight. Most cases have shown thrush as a symptom as well. At this point the person is in the final stages of HIV--AIDS. Extreme chest infections with high fever are common and survival rate is above 70% but decrease with each recurrence.

CDC Recommends

Drug companies and makers of oral tests stand to benefit significantly from this change of emphasis. It is expected that tests which are now administered at hospitals and clinics will soon be available over the counter. People interested in testing themselves will be able to do it at home. This ought to lead to a significant increase in sales of HIV testing kits.

It is also hoped that early detection will lead to less transmission of the disease. A recent CDC survey found that sexually-active adults altered their sexual behavior patterns after they were diagnosed with HIV. They were less likely to engage in unprotected sexual activity, in plenty of cases opting for a condom or for not engaging in sex at all.

Some argue that as in so plenty of areas within the health industry, efforts aimed at prevention will get replaced by promises of a speedy cure brought to us compliments of the brilliantly influential and increasingly invasive drug companies.

There ought to even be a rise in HIV treatment drugs as hundreds of thousands of people learn they have HIV and start treatment with anti-HIV drugs. Currently anti-HIV drugs account for about $6-billion in sales in the U.S. That number ought to increase dramatically if the new testing procedures show to be effective.

Drugs For Treating Aids

In of the most promising developments in over twenty years, scientists claim that drugs used to control HIV/AIDS in patients may even be effective in stopping the disease in the first place.

The drugs in query are tenofovir (Viread) and emtricitabine, or FTC (Emtriva), sold in combination as Truvada by Gilead Sciences Inc. Gilead is the California company best known for inventing Tamiflu.

Earlier research has been aimed at finding a vaccine against HIV/AIDS, with the purpose of conditioning the immune technique against the disease. But these drugs work differently. They basically keep the virus from reproducing, and have already been used successfuly by health care workers to prevent them from being infected by the virus carried by patients.

Introduction

The first cases of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) were reported in the U.S. in June of 1981. The occurrence of the syndrome among gay men, intravenous (IV) drug abusers &, later, blood transfusion recipients & persons with hemophilia suggested a transmissible agent as the cause. In 1984, scientists identified a retrovirus, human immune deficiency virus (HIV), often known as human T-Iymphotropic virus type III/lymphoadenopathy, associated virus (HTLV-III/LAV), as the primary cause of AIDS. In 1985, screening tests to detect antibodies to HIV were licensed, allowing identification of infected individuals & the screening of the blood supply. Researchers have been able to map the genetic structure of HIV & to demonstrate the nature of the immune defect. Ongoing research is aimed at identifying risk factors & preventive strategies, evaluating antiviral drugs, developing drugs to increase the immune method, & developing a vaccine.

Prevalence of AIDS

A total of 21,517 cases of AIDS were reported in the United States by June 9, 1986.

AIDS cases have been reported from all 50 states, the District of Columbia & three U.S. territories.

Although the number of new AIDS cases continues to increase each year, the rate of increase has diminished, as shown below.

The length of time necessary for a doubling of the cumulative number of AIDS cases in the U.S. has increased from five months in 1982 to 11 months in January, 1986.

The annual incidence rate of AIDS in the U.S. has increased from 0.11 cases per 100,00 persons in 1981 to one.43 cases per 100,000 persons for the year ending May 31, 1984.

The prevalence of AIDS in the U.S. as of June 9, 1986, was 94.5 cases per million population. Broad geographical variation exists, with the highest prevalence rates recorded in New York City (722.0 cases per million) & San Francisco (684.8 cases per million). Those cities accounted for 41% of all 21,517 AIDS cases reported in the U.S. by June 9, 1986.

Mortality from AIDS

As of June 9, 1986, 11,713 people died in the U.S. from AIDS, representing 54% of all known cases.

The case fatality rate is over 75% for persons diagnosed with AIDS for years or more.

In a follow-up of about three,600 cases of AIDS in New York City and State, the median survival time for gay men was ten months and for IV drug abusers 7 months.

The median survival of those AIDS patients with Kaposi's sarcoma was 14 months, those with Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia was 7 months and those with other opportunistic infections was 6 months.

Since about 90% of AIDS patients are between 20-49 years elderly, AIDS leads to a disproportionate number of years of potential life lost (YPLL) before age 65. In single men ages 25-44 years in the U.S., AIDS caused  as lots of YPLL in 1984 (32,300) as did cancer (39,500) in 1980. In Manhattan and San Francisco in 1984, AIDS was the leading cause of YPLL among 25-44 year-old men with more YPLL than for accidents, murder, suicide, and cancer combined.

Modes

All persons with AIDS or with antibodies to HIV are thought about carriers of the virus, able to transmitting the infection to others.

Although HIV has been isolated from the blood, semen, saliva, tears, urine & breast milk of infected individuals, the only known transmission has been by blood & semen. Studies of nonsexual household contacts of AIDS patients indicate that casual contact with saliva & tears does not lead to transmission of infection.

In most cases, HIV appears to have been transmitted through or more of routes: sexual contact, intravenous drug administration with contaminated needles, administration of blood & blood products, & passage of the virus from infected mothers to their unborn kids.

HIV infection can persist even in asymptomatic individuals for at least several years. Retrovirus infections in animals persist for life. The presence of HIV antibody is presumptive facts of current infection & infectibility.

the United States

In Europe, a cumulative total of one,573 cases of AIDS have been diagnosed through September 1985. The highest prevalence rates were recorded in Belgium (11.9 per million), Switzerland (11.8 per million) and Denmark (11.2 per million), but were far below the estimated prevalence of AIDS in the U.S. in September 1985 of 60.0 per million.

In Europe, 92% of the AIDS patients as of September 1985 were males and 88% were between 20-49 years of age. Of the total European AIDS cases, 69% were gay or bisexual men, 6% were IV drug abusers, 2% were both of the above, 3% were hemophilia patients, 2% were transfusion recipients without other risk factors, 2% were unknown, and 11% had no known risk factors. Of those without identifiable risk factors, up to 72% were from countries where heterosexual transmission of HIV occurs often.

The Pan-American Health Organization reports one,685 cases of AIDS in the Americas outside the U.S. through December 31, 1985. all of those cases were from Brazil (540), Canada (435) and Haiti (377).

Intervention Data

Surveys of risk factors for HIV infections among gay & bisexual men in San Francisco revealed that the percentage of persons with over sexual partner in the coursework of the 30 days prior to the survey decreased from 49% in August, 1984, to 26% in April, 1985. The percentage of persons who were monogamous, celibate or had no risky sexual activity outside a primary relationship increased from 69% in August, 1984, to 81% in April, 1985. (In this study, an risky sexual practice included anal intercourse without a condom & oral sex with exchange of semen.)

Cases of rectal gonorrhea in men attending the San Francisco City Health Department clinics declined 73% between 1980-1984.

Between 1980-1983, rates of rectal & pharyngeal gonorrhea in men in Manhattan decreased 59%

Health Services

The preliminary hospitalization of AIDS patients entails a mean length of stay of 31 days. Rehospitalization for new or recurrent opportunistic infections is frequent.

A New York City study found that 14% of AIDS patients died in the coursework of the preliminary hospitalization, 35% spent less than 30% of the time in the hospital after the preliminary hospitalization, 16% spent between 30%-50% of the time hospitalized & the remaining 35% spent over 50% of the time in the hospital.

It is estimated that the first ten,000 patients with AIDS will spend a total of one,677,900 days in the hospital.

A Michigan study reported that AIDS patients had an average of 6.4 hospitalizations at an average length of stay of 14 days over an 18-month average lifespan

Economic Impact

An estimated $147,000 is spent on the whole hospital care of each AIDS patient.

A study of the economic costs of AIDS estimated that in 1984 each AIDS patient was admitted to a hospital an average of one.7 times for an average length of hospitalization of 13.0 days. The average charge per hospital day was $740. The average outpatient charge was estimated at $2,015 for each AIDS case in 1984.

The direct economic costs of AIDS in 1985 have been estimated at a total of $836.5 million, including $517.4 million in personal medical care costs & $319.1 million in non-personal costs (research, blood screening, schooling & prevention services).

The total economic impact of the first ten,000 cases of AIDS in the U.S. has been estimated at $6.3 billion, including $1.4 billion on direct hospitalization expenses, $189 million in lost wages due to disability & $4.6 billion in lost earnings from premature death.

The indirect economic costs of AIDS in 1985 were estimated at $3,285.6 million, including $205.7 million in morbidity costs (value of productivity losses due to disease & disability) & $3,079.0 million in mortality costs (value of earnings lost due of premature death).

The Fear Epidemic

By any measure, AIDS is a daunting disease. It is physically devastating, incurable, and deadly. And it is spreading at a menacing pace. Fear and misconceptions about AIDS, however, have spread faster than the disease itself.

Federal health officials stress that the AIDS virus has spread very exclusively by routes: by sexual activity, through blood contact (contamination with or transfusion of infected blood or blood products), and from an infected pregnant woman to her fetus or newborn. The only other known instances in which the virus was transmitted, say officials, involved artificial insemination or organ transplants from infected donors.

But lots of people stay unconvinced. They fear that casual personal contact with an AIDS victim�a handshake, a sneeze, a drink from the same glass�might lead to infection. A kid with AIDS trying to attend school can throw a community in to a frenzy. An AIDS patient returning to work may find coworkers deserting the job in protest.

Testing for Exposure to Aids

Before ELISA, it was difficult to trace the spread of the virus. There was no practical way to detect it in people without signs, who represent the largest number of those infected. By mid-1988, about 65,000 cases of AIDS had been reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC). An estimated 325,000 people had AIDS-related complex (ARC), a term used to report a condition that includes (in addition to laboratory proof of immunodeficiency) swollen glands, recurrent fever, weight loss, or a combination of those signs. When persons with ARC create any of numerous opportunistic infections (or Kaposi's sarcoma), they are thought about to have developed AIDS.

By 1985, a simple, cheap blood check for detecting exposure to the AIDS virus had been developed and approved for use. Called ELISA (for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay), the check detects antibodies produced by white blood cells in response to the presence of the virus. Developed primarily to screen potential blood donors, ELISA has also served as a versatile research tool, greatly facilitating analysis of the epidemic's path.

Heterosexual Transmission

In contrast to oral sex or deep kissing, vaginal intercourse is clearly an important route of infection. The AIDS virus can be spread by either a man or a woman in the coursework of intercourse.

On a relative scale, vaginal intercourse appears to be less effective in spreading the virus than anal intercourse, & less contagious from female to male than the reverse. As yet, the risk of transmission in a single act of vaginal intercourse is unknown. But current facts suggests that frequent or long-term sexual exposure with an infected partner or partners is an important factor in transmission.

Some confusion initially surrounded the status of Haitians, who were one time listed as a separate risk group for AIDS. Epidemiologists have since found that the infection rate is not high among Haitians who are longterm U.S. residents. It is high, though, among recent immigrants with a history of venereal disease or sexual contact with prostitutes. In both Haiti & central Africa, infected prostitutes are an important factor in the spread of the virus among heterosexuals.

As of mid-1988, about four percent of newly diagnosed AIDS cases in the U.S. can be traced to heterosexual transmission. A large number of the victims are spouses or long-term sexual partners of AIDS patients or other high-risk individuals, intravenous-drug users. Another giant segment includes immigrants from Haiti & central Africa, where the virus spreads chiefly by heterosexual intercourse.

Aids Is Not Transmitted

Detection of the AIDS virus in saliva in 1984, & subsequently in tears, sparked immediate public concern. But further research has shown that the virus is never present in either. When it is, the quantity is minute�probably low, say most public-health specialists, to play a role in infection. Nevertheless, as a precaution, they still warn against deep kissing with an infected person & advise special procedures for eye-care & dental personnel, who are constantly exposed to tears or saliva.

No such precautions apply to contact with drinking glasses, eating utensils, eyeglasses, & the like. All proof shows that the risk from such items is nonexistent. The same is true for a typical friendly kiss.

Some parents of young schoolchildren also fear that a bite from an infected classmate might transmit the virus. Here again, the concern is unwarranted, specialists at the CDC say. The amount of virus in saliva�if any�is thought about minuscule to cause infection, in a single instance of biting.

There is no proof that the virus can be transmitted by food or by any variety of insect. Nurses who have administered mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to AIDS patients have not become infected. Nor have kids attending school with hemophiliac classmates who were infected. But possibly the strongest proof that the virus presents no threat in casual contact comes from studies in families.

Who Died of Aids

Rock Hudson (died 1985) � Rock Hudson was an American actor who starred in lots of films and several TV programmes. They was well renowned for his role in romantic comedies and as a romantic leading man (often acting opposite Doris Day), playing of his masculine looks. They was voted �Star of the Year�, �Favourite Leading Man� and lots of other roles and completed around 70 films over decades making him something of a Over Grant-type figure. It was ironic in a way then that for all this time they was hiding his homosexuality and would succumb to, and finally die of, AIDS at the age of 60.

Kimberly Bergalis (died 1991) � Kimberly Bergalis is an unusual addition to this list as someone whose fame actually came from their experience with AIDS as someone who would become a pivotal symbol in the debate regarding AIDS testing for health professionals. With no celebrity status before her debacle, it was a tragic way to acquire fame.

As the eldest of daughters, Bergalis was born in 1978 and attended the University of Florida to major in business. Here he had serious boyfriends but seldom lost her virginity and had seldom used any kind of drugs. In 1987 he had molars removed by her dentist Dr David J Acer. Tragically, Dr Acer had been diagnosed with AIDS that year and soon after Bergalis began to show signs herself. CDC tests suggested that it was Acer who infected Bergalis and several of his other patients. HIV can spread from patient to doctor, doctor to patient or even patient to patient by reusing unsterilized instruments (scalpels, hypodermic needles etc). Today all such instruments are disposable.

HIV Home Testing Kits

One reliable fast check is the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay or the ELISA check. This check exactly detects the presence of anti-bodies to combat HIV. If there's anti-bodies present in the samples, then the patient is positive for HIV. If there is no detection of these, then the result is negative and the patient is not infected with HIV. This check has 99% accuracy.

Those who tested positive for HIV using the ELISA check may again be re-confirmed by another HIV check known as the Western Blot. This check is more complicated than the ELISA check and is completed only if the patient wishes to make positive of the results.

As for the home HIV testing kit, the person can do the check in the privacy of the home. The check ought to be completed with caution to keep away from contamination of the results. The first thing to be completed is to make positive that your hands are tidy. Make positive the environment or your home is tidy before doing the check. You take your blood sample by using the needle and placing a drop in to a testing ground then merge the transparent liquid which helps in the formulation of the results. Results appear in the type of lines. It supposedly detects anti-bodies in the blood sample. However, the validity of the home HIV check kits is not regarded as reliable. Most check kits are not approved by the FDA except for which has been recommended for use.

However, being tested negative does not mean you are safe from HIV. Doctors usually recommend another check after six months to make positive that the virus is not present in the body technique.

The important thing to keep in mind is that HIV ought to not be taken lightly. Home HIV check kits are useful if precautions are observed on how the way the tests are completed in hospitals and clinics. Those who use it are advised to seek proper medical attention immediately if results are positive.

HIV Rash

In those cases where the rash is a symptom of the HIV itself, than the medication, it will appear in the work of the �sero-conversion� of the infection. This is the point at which antibodies are developed by the body in order to try to combat the infected cells. This will tend to occur around weeks in to the infectio, though in some cases it might be much later.

HIV has long been difficult to diagnose with no consistent or obvious signs. However in some cases a rash will create that can help indicate the existence of the HIV virus, while in others it may be the result of the drugs used to control the condition. In both these cases the rash is named a �HIV rash�. Roughly 80% of HIV sufferers will get some kind of rash associated with their condition.

The rash itself will then appear as a slightly raised area, dark red in colour, & made up of lots of small �pauples� much like lots of other rashes (for those with a dark skin tone the rash may alternatively be dark brown). This type of rash is named a maculpapular rash & can occur on any part of the body � usually the face & trunk & occasionally the hands & feet. Sometimes it might also cause ulcers in the mouth. The rash itself is likely to itch making it disagreeable.

Home Test Kit

When looking in to using a HIV home check kit, it is important to to start with check that the kit is FDA approved which will give you some reassurance that it is effective and will agree with what doctors' findings may be. The FDA approval code is an 11 digit code that can be found normally on the kit. The way in which HIV check kits work is by allowing you to send off your own blood sample (by pricking your finger and allowing blood to land on the blotter) and then wait 24 hours before ringing the lab with that 11 digit code (the other advantage of this code is that it lets you get your results without having to give away any personal information such as your name).

HIV (AKA the Human Immunodeficiency Virus), like all STIs (Sexually Transmitted Infections) is a moderately embarrassing condition and that lots of of us are afraid to face up to. Lots of us will therefore avoid seeing the doctor when they suspect that they may have HIV or something similar � while still knowing that it is vital to get diagnosed as soon as feasible. Thus HIV 'home test' kits have become very popular, allowing individuals to check themselves for HIV from the privacy of their home.

HIV

HIV is a serious threat and has been the reason for plenty of deaths in the West and in the developing world. It is classed as a 'pandemic' and between its discovery in 1981 and 2006, AIDS was responsible for the deaths of over 25 million people. Plenty of people continue to suffer with HIV and AIDS today, and it currently affects around 0.6% of the population. In 2009 alone it claimed around one.8 million lives.

HIV, or 'human immunodeficiency virus', is a serious virus that is most known for its role in causing AIDS � a condition that causes the progressive failure of the immune method and that leads to potentially threatening infections and cancers to occur. Often HIV and AIDS are used interchangeably for this reason, though technically the are different conditions. HIV is a serious condition that is caused through blood transfusions, breast milk, and the exchange of sexual fluids where it is present as a free virus and a virus within infected immune cells.

All of this means that a feasible cure for AIDS would be fantastic news that could modify the lives of millions of people each year and prevent millions more deaths. While there is currently no cure for HIV, recent developments and research has meant that people can live with AIDS and HIV much longer than they could ever before, while simultaneously further research is looking in to promising potential cures that might be obtainable in the future.

Techniques

While there currently is no cure for AIDS, there's nevertheless lots of management techniques in place. Treatment will normally consist of 'highly active antiretroviral therapy' which is taken as a combination of or more drugs which are of particular classes of antiretroviral agent. Therapy ought to be begun as soon as feasible & at the point where the CD4 count falls below 500. When therapy is deferred death rates are two times as high. However these therapies are lifelong commitments & have a range of risks & benefits. If treatment is stopped even temporarily then high levels of HIV-1 often return & are at this point then HAART resistance � so adherence to the medication is highly important. If treatment is started by the time that the CD4 count falls below 350 then the life expectancy is 32 years, though this is higher for those who start earlier. Without HAART, HIV will progress to AIDS after around 9-10 years & at this point life expectancy is only 9.2 months.