Aids - Essay 10

AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. AIDS is caused
by the

HIV virus, the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. Most of the people get
the HIV virus

by having sexual intercourse with an infected person, sharing syringes
(when using

drugs or in cheap hospitals) with an infected person, some are also
born with the

disease or the babies drink the breast milk of an infected woman. Once
a body is

infected by the HIV virus, the human body produces antibodies to fight
the virus. A

blood test can reveal if someone has the HIV disease or not, if he or
she has the

disease, then he or she is HIV-positive. Being HIV-positive is not the
same as having

AIDS, the disease does not have to make the person sick immediately,
it often stays

suppressed for many years. Once the disease breaks out, it slowly
wears down the

immune system making a person very vulnerable to normally harmless
viruses,

parasites, fungi and bacteria, if any of those attacks the immune
system it can make

you very sick and could even prove fatal, these illnesses are called
opportunistic

infections. After your immune system has been seriously damaged the
HIV disease

becomes AIDS. A normal, healthy person has 500-1500 T-cells or also
called CD4+

cells in every milliliter of blood, if you have less than 200 CD4+
cells or your CD4+

percentage is less than 14%, you have AIDS. Also if you get an
opportunistic

infection, you have AIDS, the most common opportunistic infections are
PCP

(Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia), a lung infection; KS (Kaposi's
sarcoma, a skin

cancer; CMV (Cytomegalovirus), an infection that usually affects the
eyes; and

Candida, a fungal infection that can cause thrush, which is a white
film in your

mouth, or infections in the throat or vagina. AIDS-related diseases
also includes

serious weight loss, brain tumors and other health problems, without
treatment

these infections can kill you. AIDS affects...