We are going to discuss the Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as one of the diseases that causes a lot of disorder of how a standard human being body functions. HIV is a virus that attacks the humans' immune system. The immune system is that part of the human body that protects our body from other diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis. The human immunodeficiency virus weakens the immune system to an extent it can no longer protect the body anymore. When the body reaches this level, the victim will be diagnosed with a syndrome known as Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). HIV can only affect human beings, and that is why it is known as ‘Human Immunodeficiency Virus.' Transmission of the virus can only be done when there is an exchange of body fluids.
A human being can only be diagnosed with Human immunodeficiency virus three months after the day of infection. This is the time when the disease will be at its puberty stage. After infection, the person will experience influenza-like illness stage. According to research conducted by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 1981 shows that the disease was first diagnosed in West and Central Africa. This disease has claimed lives of more than 30,000,000 people since it was first diagnosed in Africa. There has been a lot of research on the cure of HIV, but nobody has ever come up with the solution. Instead, there has been Anti-Retroviral (ARV) a drug which lowers the strength of HIV in the body. People infected by the deadly virus have been going through stigmatization from society. This has led to more death as many people do not want to be tested fearing stigmatization.
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There are several ways of how Human immunodeficiency virus can be transmitted. These methods include; from mother to child during the birth process, during breastfeeding and even during the pregnancy period through the blood transfusion from the person who is infected to a healthy person. Injecting our body with infected needles is another method of how people can be affected by HIV. This happens when people share needle and even during the tattooing process. Having unprotected sex with an infected individual, put one at a higher risk of getting infected.
Human immunodeficiency virus is the only virus which can easily evade the body's immune system. This virus is a sophisticated enveloped which protect it from the white blood cells. HIV attacks the immune system of human beings. The immunity systems are the security team which attacks any diseases that try to infect the body. The immunity team includes white blood cells and antibody-antigen reactions. What Human immunodeficiency virus does is it attacks the defense team. It then weakens the body soldiers to an extent they can no longer defend the body. After the weakening, the body will have no defense team that can protect it from other infections. This is the stage when aid is said to have Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome.
Research conducted by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that not everybody knows their status in HIV/AIDs. In a group of seven people who are infected by the virus, only six knows that they are affected. Knowing your HIV status is vital for the prevention of the body from server immune system destruction. The only way that one can be diagnosed by HIV is through a blood test (Gengiah, 2010) . HIV test is done using its specific blood test kit. The kit will show the results of whether the victim is either positive or negative. The test can be done several times to improve its accuracy level. Not all infected people test positive when tested, but it must take three to six months to show up in the test. Those who are at the risk of being infected should be tested after every three months.
People who are affected by HIV will have some common symptoms. Different symptoms happen at different stages of HIV. The initial phase after contracting HIV is known as the acute HIV stage. This stage the victim will develop influenza kind of illness. Most cases people will start to have fever, headaches and throat inflammation. Not everybody will experience this but 40 to 90% of the people living with HIV. Others develop some opportunistic infections at the second stage. They start to vomit and diarrhea and experiencing a lot of nausea. The duration of these symptoms varies depending on one's immune system. The least it can take is one week and the longest time possible is two weeks.
The leading causes for Human immunodeficiency virus are sexual intercourse, being exposed to infected fluids and from a mother to the child (Hussein, 2017) . The mother can pass the virus to her child as she is breastfeeding. She can also infect the child with the deadly virus during the birth process. This is why expectant mothers are always advised to see a doctor during the delivery time. Body fluids such as urine, tears, sweat, saliva, and sputum cannot transmit the virus unless it's contaminated by infected blood. One can be infected by different varieties of HIV infections. Such type of infection is known as HIV superinfection.
Human immunodeficiency virus does not have treatment. A scientist from the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) only discovered Anti-retroviral drugs. These drugs help in reducing the strength of HIV in the human body (Gandhi, 2011). The ARVs boosts the immunity of the infected person to the level it will be able to defend itself from other diseases. There has been improved towards the search for its cure. In the late 1990s, people could take up to 5 pills a day. Since the year 2,000 scientists came up with tablet which the affected patients could take only one daily.
There are several measures that people can follow to prevent themselves from virus infection. Consistent use of protection during sex with an infected partner reduces the risk of being infected by 99%. Ladies can apply the vaginal gel which has tenofovir a few minutes before having sex can reduce the risk by 40%. Circumcised men are at a lower risk of getting infected. Therefore men can get circumcised to reduce their risks. Overall prevention from getting infected is by being faithful to your partner who you know their status. Expectant mothers are given antivirals while pregnant. The drugs are also given after birth to the infant to prevent any possible risk of contamination (Gandhi, 2011) . Women who are HIV+ are advised to use bottle milk and not breast milk. By the year 2012, there was no reliable vaccine for HIV. The available vaccine could only prevent one from being infected by 30%. People who are sharing sharp objects should stop. Such objects like a needle can transmit the virus from one person to another.
Human immunodeficiency virus has been one of the most feared viral diseases. Since it's first to diagnose the disease has significantly been dealt with. Introduction of ARVs has brought some hope of life to the victims. This is a virus that can be prevented when people follow the measures necessary in life. After one is infected with HIV, they can still live a healthy life like any other person. Stigmatization does not help the infected people, but it kills them.
References
Campbell-Yesufu, O. T., & Gandhi, R. T. (2011). Update on human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-2 infection. Clinical infectious diseases , 52 (6), 780-787.
Campbell-Yesufu, O. T., & Gandhi, R. T. (2011). Update on human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-2 infection. Clinical infectious diseases , 52 (6), 780-787.
Karim, Q. A., Karim, S. S. A., Frohlich, J. A., Grobler, A. C., Baxter, C., Mansoor, L. E., ... & Gengiah, T. N. (2010). Effectiveness and safety of tenofovir gel, an antiretroviral microbicide, for the prevention of HIV infection in women. science , 329 (5996), 1168-1174.
Schober, T., Magg, T., Laschinger, M., Rohlfs, M., Linhares, N. D., Puchalka, J., ... & Hussein, K. (2017). A human immunodeficiency syndrome caused by mutations in CARMIL2. Nature communications , 8 , 14209.
