Depression is one of the first symptoms of Aids, and of course, can be mistaken for the regular blahs or a temporary mood. However, depression is more profound than sadness and includes lethargy and a lack of interest in activities that were once enjoyable.

Diarrhea thrush or a bad taste in one’s mouth and a white coating on the tongue or the gums, these problems occur because the body is no longer able to fight off minor infections and the patient is more vulnerable to microbes.

Rapid weight loss and lip dystrophy are symptoms of aids that affect the proper distribution of body fats. One’s arms may be bony while there may be buildups of fat on the stomach or behind the neck. This happens because the HIV virus attacks the mitochondria, or the cells which digest fats.

Patients with AIDS have had their immune system depleted by HIV and are very susceptible to such opportunistic infections. Common symptoms are fevers, sweats (particularly at night), swollen glands, chills, weakness, and weight loss.

The symptoms of AIDS are primarily the result of infections that do not normally develop in individuals with healthy immune systems. These are called opportunistic infections.

Respiratory Symptoms – Some of the most serious symptoms of HIV involve the respiratory system. Symptoms associated with breathing and respiration usually occur later in course of the disease. Unfortunately, many people’s first symptom of HIV involves the respiratory system, illustrating why HIV testing is so important. Any cough or shortness of breath could be a sign of bacterial pneumonia or pneumocystis.

AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome: AIDS is caused by a virus called HIV, the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. If you get infected with HIV, your body will try to fight the infection. It will make “antibodies,” special molecules to fight HIV. Many people are HIV-positive but don’t get sick for many years. As HIV disease continues, it slowly wears down the immune system. Viruses, parasites, fungi and bacteria that usually don’t cause any problems can make you very sick if your immune system is damaged. The virus, which is transmitted from one individual to another through the exchange of body fluids (such as blood or semen), attacks white blood cells, thereby causing the body to lose its capacity to ward off infection. As a result, many AIDS patients die of opportunistic infections that strike their debilitated bodies.

Treatment of AIDS

Antiretroviral treatment for HIV infection consists of drugs which work against HIV infection itself by slowing down the replication of HIV in the body. For antiretroviral treatment to be effective for a long time, it has been found that you need to take more than one antiretroviral drug at a time. This is what is known as Combination Therapy. The term Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) is used to describe a combination of three or more anti-HIV drugs. This has been highly beneficial to many HIV-infected individuals since its introduction in 1996 when the protease inhibitor-based HAART initially became available. Current optimal HAART options consist of combinations (or “cocktails”) consisting of at least three drugs belonging to at least two types, or “classes,” of antiretroviral agents.

Prevention are based on avoiding exposure to the virus or, failing that, an antiretroviral treatment directly after a highly significant exposure, called post-exposure prophylaxis PEP has a very demanding four week schedule of dosage. It also has very unpleasant side effects including diarrhea, malaise, nausea and fatigue.

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In the lab we can make CD4 receptors with ease and then inject them into the patient’s blood stream without causing any harm. These free floating receptors then attach to HIV floating in the blood and cause it to become harmless. We can even attach the CD4 receptors in large numbers to a bigger molecule, so they can be filtered out of the blood by the kidneys. This dramatically reduces the amount of HIV in the blood by tricking it into bonding with a significantly larger number of either free floating or CD4 receptors bonded with larger harmless molecules. Regular treatments could completely eliminate the risk of HIV causing any significant damage to the immune system and developing into AIDS.

The second line of defense is to protect all the healthy white bloods cells in the patient, so the immune system can get back to normal. Since CD4 receptors serve no purpose in the body and some people don’t even have them, we can create complimentary molecules to bond with and essentially cap the CD4 receptors. The last time I checked there were close to 200 commercially available injectable medicines that served this purpose. The down side is that new white blood cells would not be protected, so regular injections would be necessary and the CD4 receptor problem would not be permanently solved. However, we can work backwards chemically to identify the segment of DNA that results in a person having CD4 receptors and replace that segment of DNA using genetic medicines to permanently eliminate the problem. Or we can trick the ribosomes into creating proteins that will cap the CD4 receptors throughout an individual’s lifetime by adding a segment with instructions to make the new protein.

So here is a cure to eliminate HIV and provide significant immunity to acquiring AIDS.

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What’s in There to Complicate Things?

Even people who have genital herpes had little or no idea at all that having an HIV is an impediment to the treatment of their genital infection. There is only one part of our whole system that has the answer to it all, our immune system. It is the only component of our body that fights back all types, intensity and classes of infectious offensives. Working its way most of the time to counter these savage attacks can weaken the immune system itself until it becomes exhausted of its “soldiering” capability.

What happens next to our body when we have a weakened immune system is that we look like a precious but unguarded territory. All kinds of marauders and bad elements in the form of viruses and diseases could freely enter our defenseless body anytime they wanted to. As a result, we became gravely ill even with just an ordinary brush with any sickness.

HIV, as we all know is the primary source of immune system weakening. The virus itself impairs the ability of the body to produce antibodies, the natural soldiers of our body, thus, weakening our immune system. Having HIV on top of genital herpes is enough reason to be afraid of when not given an expert medical attention at its early stage.

The Great Barrier

Persons with HIV, undergoing chemotherapy treatment and experiencing other autoimmune deficiencies would significantly suffer from the many complications that may result due to the inability of the body to react to the treatment directed towards treating the HSV-2 virus attack. People experiencing this kind of quandary is said to have a compromised immune system and may be treated differently.

Aside from the body’s inability to directly react to the treatment, there are other complications too that may result out of a compromised immune system. These complications include:

Herpes sores or lesions that will usually heal in a week or two will last 3 to 4 weeks or even more Flare-ups that is normally tolerable can become painful to incredibly painful under the influence of HIV Though rarely happens, HIV can make it possible for the herpes infections to spread to other major body organs like the throat, eyes, lungs and last but not the least, the brain.

Two-fold Precaution

People already suffering from HIV/AIDS would take double dose of precautions because they were the ones more susceptible in acquiring infectious diseases like genital herpes. Though HSV alone is never life menacing, under the influence of HIV things would be totally different at all.

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Applicants for USA Immigration and Visas were subject to a list of medical examinations, including HIV infection examination. A final rule to delete it from this list as well as the list of communicable diseases of public health significance has been issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Various officials have supported this action saying that it’s high time one ends the social stigma attached to this disease. It certainly does not deserve forbidding entry to the country and allowing an infected person into the country should not pose a health risk to the nation.

President Obama at the signing ceremony for the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act said that the HIV Travel Ban made in 1987, was a “decision rooted in fear rather than fact”. If USA was to be a world leader in HIV, then it had to act like one. Henceforth, no alien who wants to visit or migrate to USA can be prevented by USA Immigration from doing so on the grounds of having this disease, because, though serious, this disease is not spread by casual contact and hence does not signify a major public health risk.

The HIV Travel Ban will be lifted from January 4, 2010. Meanwhile, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Bureau has asked its officials to suspend decisions on green card applications that were pending due to the HIV status of the applicant. So being HIV positive can no longer be criteria for barring a person from entry to the United States.

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It’s even worse to see sick people who, despite their condition, are forced out of their residences. Losing their homes would make it more difficult for these people to take care of their health, like those who are inflicted with HIV/AIDS. For them, losing their health to the HIV virus is as hard as losing their dwellings to foreclosure.

It’s fortunate that there is money allotted for building houses specifically for people suffering from AIDS. The government, through its housing arm the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), is giving a housing grant worth $1.4 million to the Los Angeles Housing Department to provide permanent housing to people with the disease.

HUD‘s Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS Program or HOPWA will give the federal grant to the City of Los Angeles to help persons with AIDS concentrate more on getting treatment instead of worrying about where they will stay.

This money will definitely be a great deal not only for those who are ill but for their own families as well. No longer would they have to think about where to find money to pay for next month’s rent once they have their own homes. They can just spend the money on medication and other more important expenses.

HOPWA still has more to give. There are 18 other local programs all over the country which will benefit from their grants. More people with HIV/AIDS will get permanent housing in the future because the program has allotted a total of $19.4 million for the project. Because of this, getting better will be easier for people with AIDS all over the United States.

Housing Assistance Network http://new.housingassistancenetwork.com > – is a site that aims to help those who are in the low to moderate income brackets find financial assistance for housing, help in acquiring a new home, or grant programs from both state and non-government institutions.

Article source: http://new.housingassistancenetwork.com/posts/view/hud-allots-1-4-million-in-federal-grants-to-provide-permanent-housing-to-people-with-aids

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The chief executive officer of the Free Africa Foundation, Mr. Nii Yahaya Futa said this in an exclusive interview with this reporter.

He noted that youth within the metropolis could not know their HIV status; this exercise would help them in the right direction. This, he said, would sensitize the youth in the dangers incurred.

“We intend to show a video documentary on HIV/AID patients and the cause and how one can protect or abstain from sex”, he said.

He therefore, reminded the youth of the 1980s, and said there was nothing like HIV virus or pandemics in the system, since one could find it difficult to go into pre marital sex.

It was early 1990s when people began to have knowledge on information technology, and internet began to spring up.

He  took a swipe at the western style of dressing, and said that due to the era of ICT and the type of material been made public on our TVs and Internets contributed to the down fall of our traditional values.

He said Western countries neglected Africa continent for long decade, leaders of the continent hard to knock on their doors for help.

This has also contributed heavily to the migration young people from Africa to seek a greener pastures in Europe, America and the Asia.

Some of these young men passes through the meditarian sea and finally to European land. This did not auger well to the European Commission, certain measures had to put in place to prevent illegal immigrants on the European territorial waters.

“The economic situation in Africa is very bad and the young people can not even find job let alone to find a better place to live”, he added.

Free Africa Foundation was established in 2000 to educate the general public on sexual reproductive health, conflict resolution and HIV/AIDS prevention.

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Your friends and family should be taken into confidence. Their support will guide you a long way. Lift your morale and try taking advice or a counselor or a social worker who works in this field. Talking will help you to relieve you of the stress and anxiety you face initially. Education holds the key in keeping yourself updated about the disease and its effects on you. There are several informative websites on the internet which can guide you. Take guidance of your local health department. Your immune system is the worst affected because of this disease so visit the doctor every week or fortnight.

It is the most dreaded disease because it attacks your immune system and makes you susceptible to a lot of other ailments. The Viral Load test and the CD4 test are reliable tests that give the doctor an accurate idea of how much HIV virus is in your bloodstream. It is the viral test that determines the intensity of virus that is present in your bloodstream and the CD4 test that can find out how strong your immune system is at the time of the test.

HIV (human immunodeficiency syndrome) is definitely not a contagious disease and it cannot be spread through hugging, sharing the toilet seat or sharing utensils. Your family should also do a research on this topic so that they are at ease. HIV carrier is transmitted via the sharing of contaminated needles, from an HIV infected mother to baby during birth or due to breastfeeding. The main source of transmission is sex with an infected partner.

The huge variety of medicines available today for controlling this disease can be confusing. Rely on your medical consultant. Century old traditional practices like acupuncture and some herbs are known to cure cancer but it is only a myth. They may give you some relief or benefit but consult a renowned practitioner.

If you are feeling isolated and left alone join some voluntary organization that deals in the uplifted of people affected by HIV/AIDS. These services might also give you the confidence to carry on your life normally. There are a lot of people who carry this deadly virus, who run such organizations and help people in distress.

Prayers can comfort you at this juncture and have faith in God, the almighty.

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These are depressing numbers suggesting that in fact the rise of new HIV infections continues in an unrelenting fashion. Gay men remain a disproportionate section of the newly infected people, prompting many to ask what has gone wrong in terms of public health campaigns. There is currently great controversy over the approach taken by the UK Dept of Health and some of the HIV charities.

When I grew up there were quite terrifying campaigns with tomb-stones and sinister ice-bergs warning of the dangers of unprotected sex. These were crticised at the time but they did cause an alteration in sexual behaviour with reduced rates of other STD’s suggesting that people were using condoms and taking notice and effort to protect themselves. The current campaigns are nihilistic and feature what are euphemistically called “harm-reduction” iniatives – such as exhortations to pull an unprotected penis out of a partners anus before ejaculating over his back. This is dangerous, facile, patronising and will lead to a sense of false security. The charities promulgating these dangerous messages should have their funding reviewed and withdrawn. Some have become behemoths more concerned with the survival of their own bloated staffing structures than education and HIV prevention.

The recognition that early diagnosis of HIV is possible using HIV DUO tests, sometimes referred to to as 4th generation tests (HIV DUO tests comprise HIV 1 and 2 antibody tests and also HIV p24 antigen) and that early diagnosis presents a real opportunity both to reduce damage to the newly infected individual and also to markedly reduce the spread of the disease has potential to revolutionise testing methodologies. The National AIDS Trust (NAT) which Freedomhealth supports through donations made via its interactive Sexual Health Forum is a charity which has made a concerted effort to address the early testing dilemma. It has published two useful documents recently.

One is “Primary HIV Infection” issued in July 2008 and the other relates to Home Testing for HIV which will be the subject of a separate article. Primary HIV Infection is an excellent document which neatly and easily summarises the new HIV infection position in the UK. There were three main contributors including Dr Fisher, Dr Valerie Delpech and Dr Pillay. In addition, Gus Cairns is thanked for his support.

The paper makes several key points:- 1) There are in reality two key groups in the UK who are at most risk of HIV infection – either new or old infection. These two groups included men who have sex with other men and Africans in the UK. Whether the males identify as gay or not is not necesary. I have many male patients who are married to females and lead ostensibly heterosexual lives but have regular and often risky sex with other males. 2) New HIV testing Guidelines make it clear that testing early offers opportunities to intervene in the HIV “life-cycle” to limit onward transmission and also to offer effective, safe medical interventions that will preserve the underlying architecture of that persons immune system and preventing supervening HIV/AIDS related illness. 3) 4th generation combined HIV antibody/p24 antigen tests should be offered as the norm. These tests are not new. At Freedomhealth we have offered them for the last ten years at least and have a good feel for their accuracy and usefulness. They are fantastically useful tools in the fight against HIV. 4) Dr Fisher made the point that tehre are certain symptoms that should be reagrded as cardinal or herald symptoms or signs of new onset HIV infection. These are, as referred to above, very severe sore throat, maculopapular rash and also a very high fever.

He also makes the point that there are other symptoms and these can be subtle or unnoticed. The key to testing is if there has been a risky sexual event – or a perceived risky event then that person should take advice urgently irrespective of the symptoms. Very early recognition of a potentially unsafe event allows for early intervention using PESE as referred to in previous articles. However, if there has been a risky sexual event, particularly unprotected anal or vaginal sex and Dr Fisher’s triad of symptoms then an early HIV test at 4 weeks using a 4th generation HIV DUO test will be of great benefit. 

NAT was at pains to express the view that “Information on when to test for HIV needs to be revised to remove confusion about a three month window period. People concerned about possible HIV infection should be encouraged to seek clinical advice without delay and informed that HIV tests using latest technologies can detect most HIV infections after 12 days” In summary we know that early testing has the capacity both to preserve the integrity of the new HIV positive patient’s immune system and also to limit onward transmission of infection. Modern treatment modalities are very effective and much safer than having undiagnosed HIV. This did not used to to be the case and many people, gay males especially remember the days when they were encouraged to test but actually little if anything effcetive resulted and sometimes poisonous doses of medications were given in desperation. This is not the case any longer in the modern Western World.

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The number of HIV Aids patients has been increasing and it has been revealed that poor people are the one, who have been the common culprits of this problem and they are living in such a dangerous condition, as they cannot even afford to get a proper treatment for this disease. In order to take these people out of this fatal condition, many charitable organizations are contributing their efforts, in terms of collecting funds, which are then utilized in the treatments of HIV Aids patients. People have greatly contributed their helping hands, through fundraising. Aids red ribbon has played a vital role in enlightenment of the people.

The red ribbon awareness has been spread all over the world and people have really connected themselves with giving sufficient donations to several charitable organizations. The fundraising activities have really been shaped up innovatively, as charitable organizations have started to sell different accessories like bracelets, which have HIV red ribbons attached to them. Aids red ribbon has been so much prominent that people show great interest in any campaign, which has a connection with Aids red ribbon.

You can donate sufficient amount of money to charitable organizations, which are serving Aids patients. There are different kinds of bracelets and bangles, which have Aids red ribbon attached to them. The bracelets and bangles are very pretty and the imprinting of Aids red ribbon on them, is the sign of cause, for which the bracelet is being sold and for which the person is paying money. When you will purchase these bracelets and ribbons, the amount will be utilized in the cure and treatment of Aids patients and the bracelet will give you a feeling of satisfaction and contentment, for you have also lend your hands for the betterment of the society. The bangles and bracelets have got the imprinting of words like cure, help and save, which arouses feeling and sentiments of doing well, for the people. The basic purpose of selling such things like bangles and bracelets is that the charitable organization thanks to the people, who donate money for such noble cause. Therefore, the purpose of such type of fundraising activity is to show the gesture of thanks to the people, who become the part of charitable organization’s cause.

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HIV (Human Immunodeficiency virus) is a lentivirus which forms part of a family of viruses called the retroviruses. Retroviruses replicate using a reverse transcriptase to produce DNA from their RNA genome. The presence of the virus in humans lead to AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome).

The acute HIV infection is commonly accompanied only by mild flu-like symptoms and consequently often goes undiagnosed at this stage. Viruses can only replicate within the host cells and the particular cell that HIV invades are CD4+ T cells (immune cells) which are involved in assisting and directing other immune cells. Upon replication the cells are destroyed. Other immune cells, particularly CD8+ T cells then increase and reduce levels of the virus in the blood leading to a symptomless latency stage which can last from weeks to years. During this period the immune system keeps the levels of virus in the blood low, although it can never completely remove it.

The final stage of infection is AIDS itself. At this stage the virus has destroyed so many CD4+ T cells that the body’s ability to fight infection is considerably reduced. At this stage a person infected with HIV might notice a fairly significant weight loss, recurrent respiratory infections and ulcers etc. These then lead on to more serious opportunistic infections such as tuberculosis and pneumonia which are often fatal.

Transmission

HIV is spread by three main transmission methods. The first, and most common, is through unprotected sexual relations whereby infected sexual secretions cross into the uninfected person’s blood across a mucous membrane. The use of condoms can greatly reduce the spread of infection and so their use is being promoted especially in areas of high prevalence. The second method of transmission is by blood or blood products. This can be by open wounds, blood transfusions or by infected reused needles. HIV has therefore been a problem in drug users and needle exchange sites have been set up to try and reduce this spread. The third method of transmission is from mother to child and this can occur in childbirth or by breast feeding. This can be reduced if the mother takes anti-retrovirals and avoids breast feeding.

Epidemiology

HIV is thought to have spread from primates to humans in Sub-Saharan Africa at the beginning of the 20th Century. The first cases were recognised in America in the 1980s and from there the virus has spread across the whole world and is now officially classified as a global pandemic.

The number of people living with HIV is approximately 35 million worldwide (2/3rds of which are in Sub-Saharan Africa) and each year there about 2.7 million new infections. Each year an estimated 2.0 million people die from AIDS.

There is currently no cure for HIV/AIDS and treatment consists of expensive, but effective, anti-retrovirals (ARVs) which must be taken indefinitely for the sufferer to remain healthy. There are many ongoing global programmes trying to increase the availability of ARVs especially in developing countries where people cannot afford healthcare. A vaccine would lead to a massive breakthrough in the reduction of the disease as it could protect those unexposed, especially children, on whom HIV has taken such a toll.

Vaccine Difficulties

There are many ways that vaccines can work but the basic principle is that the immune system is exposed to harmless form of the pathogen so that antibodies are formed against this and immunity can be built up. Then, when exposed to the actual pathogen the body is prepared and can rapidly destroy the infection. The most common types of vaccines are either killed so that the preparation is no longer infectious, or they are attenuated so that the part of the pathogen that causes disease is removed but it is still recognisable to the immune system. There also other techniques that are becoming increasingly popular which include methods such as conjugating, toxoids or subunits.

HIV is a difficult virus to make a vaccine for many reasons. Usual the vaccine formulated to reflect the natural immunity of the body to combat infection, however, as no one has ever recovered form HIV this has not been possible. Most vaccines normal work by protecting against the actual disease rather than the infection itself and as HIV remains latent for such a long period this has proved difficult. The two common methods of killed and attenuated are not possible as killed HIV is not immunogenic and attenuated HIV could revert to being infectious and so is not safe.

Recent Vaccine Success

A recent clinical trial carried out by the US military and Thai Government on 16,000 participants has shown that a combination of two vaccines called RV144 could lead to a reduction in the risk of HIV infection by about a third.

The study involved volunteers in Thailand, half of whom were given a placebo, the other half were given a combination of two candidate vaccines known as Alvac and Aidsvax. The vaccine strategy was prime boost which has been shown to be the most effective for HIV as a single exposure is not enough for a sustained immune response. With prime boost the same antigen is given twice but in two different vectors. The first vaccine ‘primes’ the immune system, while the second ‘boosts’ the response. Both vaccines had been tested previously but only when used individually and neither had shown any significant effects in protecting against HIV. Alvac uses a bird virus canarypox as a vector for 3 genes from the HIV virus. Aidsvax contains a genetically engineered protein from the surface of the HIV virus.

The results, although far from being conclusive, have still been the biggest advance seen in the search for a HIV vaccine in 26 years. The trial started in 2003 with HIV negative people aged 18-30. The group that were given the placebo showed 74 new infections while the group given the vaccines only 51 new infections. 

The downside to this particular vaccine is that it has been shown to only be effective against particular strains of the virus; E and B. E is prevalent in South-East Asia while B is found mostly in Europe and the USA. This means that there is little hope for it being effective in Africa, where the burden of disease and new infection is still highest.

Although, this is seen as a great advance in terms of the science behind vaccine design there are concerns as to the public health dilemma that this could incur. Due to the way that HIV spreads often through unprotected sex and needle sharing there is a possibility that those who are vaccinated could decide to take part in more risky behaviour and there is a chance that this could outweigh the 30% reduction in infection risk and cause an even greater increase in the number of new infections rather than reducing them.

TJC

In areas of advancing medical research such as this, global communication is an inevitable part of the development of new drugs. At TJC Global, our experienced linguists can offer translation services for documents, research, histories and records and interpreting for conferences, clinical meetings, consultations, symposiums and other settings to ensure that language is not a barrier.

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