How HIV differs from AIDS
HIV is a modern disease that cannot be ignored. The virus spreads very quickly. The number of infected people is growing every year. Despite this, many men and women know practically nothing about this disease, and some even consider it mythical. You can take a position of denial until the infection has touched the person himself or his close relative. To prevent this from happening, HIV should not be ignored. It is important to know its symptoms and modes of transmission. It is also important to understand how HIV differs from AIDS.
The name of the disease is identical to the name of the virus that causes it. The virus is dangerous for human immunity. Once in the body, it begins to infect cells on the surface of which certain proteins are present - CD4 receptors. First of all, T-lymphocytes, monocytes, macrophages, etc. suffer. The virus causes their death. This is dangerous because it is these cells that form the basis of the immune system. The less they become, the weaker the body's defense. He loses the ability to resist infections, even the mildest. The death of a person with HIV is caused by diseases that are safe for healthy people.
There is no vaccine for HIV. The virus is able to change its structure. Each copy of it has at least 1 element that differs from the original. Another reason why a universal drug for the treatment of HIV has not yet been developed is that the virus infects immune cells. With the introduction of a vaccine, the number of protective cells increases, which means that the number of viral cells increases.
Content:
- What is the difference between HIV and AIDS?
- How do you know if a person develops HIV or AIDS?
- Detection and treatment
What is the difference between HIV and AIDS?
You can't get AIDS. AIDS is the terminal stage of HIV infection.
In total, WHO identifies 4 stages of the development of the disease:
- The stage of initial manifestations (acute infection).
- Widespread lymph node involvement.
- Pre-AIDS.
- AIDS.
In Russia and in some CIS countries, they use a different classification (according to Pokrovsky):
- The first stage is incubation.
- The second stage of the initial manifestations. It is divided into several subspecies: A - stage of fever, B - asymptomatic stage, C - widespread lymphadenopathy.
- The third stage of secondary injuries, where A - a decrease in body weight by less than 10%, superficial infections, B - a decrease in body weight by more than 10%, deep infections. B - generalized infections that spread throughout the body.
- The fourth stage is terminal.
In this classification, pre-AIDS is diagnosed from stage 3A, and AIDS from stage 3 B-C.
AIDS is an acquired immune deficiency syndrome and is the final stage of HIV. At this time, the level of immune cells decreases to critical levels. There can be several of them in a milliliter of blood. While the norm is 600-1900.
With AIDS, the immune system is strongly suppressed, the body loses its ability to fight any infections. Therefore, the person develops opportunistic diseases.
These include:
- Diseases of the respiratory system. This includes Pneumocystis pneumonia, microplasma pneumonia, and tuberculosis.
- Diseases of the digestive system: esophagitis of a viral or bacterial nature, cryptosporidiosis, microsporidiosis, generalized salmonellosis, cytomegalovirus infection, toxic megacolon.
- Diseases of the central nervous system. This includes pathologies such as: toxoplasmic encephalitis, cryptococcal meningitis, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, non-cognitive disorders.
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Tumor neoplasms, including: Kaposi's sarcoma, Burkitt's lymphomas, primary CNS lymphoma, large cell lymphoma, cervical cancer with invasion, carcinoma of the anus, papilloma of the genital organs.
- Other pathologies: inflammation of the retina of the eye, penicilliosis, damage to the oral cavity by fungal flora, histoplasmosis, coccidioidomycosis.
There are many diseases. They rarely develop in people without HIV and occur mainly during the AIDS stage.
Each person should have the following information:
- You can only get infected with HIV. AIDS is not infected, it is the final stage of infection.
- If a person does not receive treatment, then 9-11 years pass from the moment of infection to the AIDS stage.
- If a person receives treatment, then more than 40 years pass from the moment of infection to the development of the AIDS stage.
- With HIV infection while taking medications, a person can live 70-80 years, and without therapy - about 11 years.
- The AIDS stage lasts 9 months if the person is not receiving treatment. If therapy is carried out, then it increases to 3 years.
How do you know if a person develops HIV or AIDS?
The disease goes through several stages, including:
- Acute stage. It continues for about a month after infection. HIV-2 resembles the course of ARVI. A person's body temperature rises (no more than 37.5 ° C), skin rashes appear. When infected with HIV-1, the symptoms are similar to the flu. The patient's body temperature rises to febrile levels, the rash looks like papules, ulcerative defects form on the mucous membrane of the oral cavity. Also, the patient may have nausea and vomiting, loose stools, pain in bones and muscles. According to the listed symptoms, it is difficult to understand that HIV infection has happened, since they can occur with other pathologies. At the same time, if a person knows that about a month ago he had an unprotected intimacy, or that he was injecting drugs, he can assume the likelihood of HIV infection.
- Latent stage. At this time, HIV and immunity are in a kind of balance. A person can only be bothered by enlarged lymph nodes. An infection can only be detected in the blood.
- Pre-AIDS. A person often begins to suffer from colds, purulent rashes appear on the skin.
- AIDS. At this time, a person's well-being worsens, the body is not able to restrain the growth of opportunistic bacteria, which did not previously cause him discomfort. The likelihood of joining nosocomial infections increases. The final stage of AIDS is characterized by multiple organ failure, cancerous tumors are formed, the patient dies.
Detection and treatment
Detecting HIV is not difficult. To do this, you need to donate blood. Students of universities are offered to undergo testing, you can donate blood even in shopping centers. The analysis is carried out free of charge in polyclinics at the place of residence. For money donate blood in laboratories operating on a commercial basis. A positive test result does not mean that a person is sick. To confirm the diagnosis, you will need to donate blood again. Sampling is carried out in AIDS centers. All diagnostics are voluntary and anonymous.
Patients receive treatment throughout their lives. There is no need to pay for drugs. Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is used to contain HIV. The drugs allow you to suppress the multiplication of the virus in the body. Thanks to such treatment, a person can live for many more years, give birth to children. The stage of AIDS will not develop for a long time.
However, it is impossible to completely recover from HIV. Medicine knows several cases of getting rid of the disease, but they are isolated.
HIV is a dangerous infection and should not be ignored. It is important to know how it spreads and what it leads to. This will avoid contamination.
Article author: Mochalov Pavel Alexandrovich | d. m. n. therapist
Education: Moscow Medical Institute. IM Sechenov, specialty - "General Medicine" in 1991, in 1993 "Occupational Diseases", in 1996 "Therapy".
