What is HIV? What is AIDS?
HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is a virus that attacks the immune system, the body’s natural defense system. Without a strong immune system, the body has trouble fighting off disease. Both the virus and the infection it causes are called HIV.
White blood cells are an important part of the immune system. HIV invades and destroys certain white blood cells called CD4+ cells. If too many CD4+ cells are destroyed, the body can no longer defend itself against infection.
The last stage of HIV infection is AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). People with AIDS have a low number of CD4+ cells and get infections or cancers that rarely occur in healthy people. These can be deadly.
But having HIV does not mean you have AIDS. Even without treatment, it takes a long time for HIV to progress to AIDS-usually 10 to 12 years. If HIV is diagnosed before it becomes AIDS, medicines can slow or stop the damage to the immune system. With treatment, many people with HIV are able to live long and active lives.
What causes HIV?
HIV infection is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus. You can get HIV from contact with infected blood, semen, or vaginal fluids.
- Most people get the virus by having unprotected sex with someone who has HIV.
- Another common way of getting the virus is by sharing drug needles with someone who is infected with HIV.
- The virus can also be passed from a mother to her baby during pregnancy, birth, or breast-feeding.
HIV doesn't survive well outside the body. So it cannot be spread by casual contact such as kissing or sharing drinking glasses with an infected person.
What are the symptoms?
HIV may not cause symptoms early on. People who do have symptoms may mistake them for the flu or mono. Common early symptoms include:
- Fever.
- Sore throat.
- Headache.
- Muscle aches and joint pain.
- Swollen glands (swollen lymph nodes).
- Skin rash.
Symptoms may appear from a few days to several weeks after a person is first infected. The early symptoms usually go away within 2 to 3 weeks.
After the early symptoms go away, an infected person may not have symptoms again for many years. Treatment usually keeps the virus under control and helps the immune system stay healthy. But without treatment, the virus continues to grow in the body and attacks the immune system. After a certain point, symptoms reappear and then remain. These symptoms usually include:
- Swollen lymph nodes.
- Extreme tiredness.
- Weight loss.
- Fever.
- Night sweats.
A doctor may suspect HIV if these symptoms last and no other cause can be found.
How is HIV diagnosed?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved tests that detect HIV antibodies in urine, fluid from the mouth (oral fluid), or blood. If a test on urine or oral fluid shows that you are infected with HIV, you will probably need a blood test to confirm the results. If you have been exposed to HIV, your immune system will make antibodies to try to destroy the virus. Blood tests can find these antibodies in your blood.
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