AIDS is a chronic, life-threatening disease caused by a virus that causes deficiencies in the immune system of humans.
How does the AIDS virus work?
The AIDS virus robs the body of its ability to fight and resist viruses, germs, and fungi by infecting the immune system, making the body vulnerable to various diseases.
AIDS exposes the human body to certain types of cancer and infections that it could have fought and overcome, such as pneumonia and meningitis. The virus and the inflammation it causes is called the Human Immunodeficiency Virus - HIV.
The term acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a definition of AIDS in its more advanced stages.
About 39.5 million people around the world are infected with HIV today, despite the inhibition of AIDS in several countries of the world, but the extent of AIDS is still the same and has even increased in other countries.
Operations through which the AIDS virus cannot be transmitted
In order for HIV infection to occur, infected blood, contaminated semen, or contaminated vaginal secretions must enter the body. Hence, infection with HIV does not occur through normal daily contact with a person infected with HIV, such as: hugs, kisses, Dance, or shake hands.
The mechanism of infection with the AIDS virus
Normally, white blood cells attack and destroy foreign organisms that invade the body. This reaction is regulated and coordinated by white blood cells called T lymphocytes (CD4).
These T lymphocytes are also the central target of the AIDS virus, which attacks these cells and penetrates them. After the HIV virus succeeds in penetrating these cells, it s its genetic material into them and in this way it multiplies itself.
The new cloned HIV viruses begin to leave the host lymphocyte and enter the bloodstream, where they begin to search for new cells to attack.
Meanwhile, the host lymphocyte and neighboring healthy T cells die due to the effects of the attacking HIV virus, a cyclical phenomenon that repeats itself over and over.
Thus, in this process, millions of new HIV cells are produced every day, and at the end of this process the number of T cells decreases, until a serious immune deficiency is reached, which means the body is unable to resist viruses and pathogens that attack it.
The groups most at risk of contracting AIDS
Anyone of any age of any sex can be infected with HIV, but the risk of contracting HIV increases when:
Having unprotected sex with many people, and the degree of risk does not differ whether the person is having sex with the opposite sex, with the same sex, or with both sexes. Unprotected sex means having sexual intercourse without a condom.
Having sexual relations with a partner who carries HIV.
A person who has another sexually transmitted disease, such as syphilis, herpes, chlamydia, gonorrhea, and viral vaginitis.
Frequent use of common syringes and needles several times when using intravenous drugs.
Not having enough of the CCL3L1 gene, which helps fight HIV.
Newborns and babies of mothers who are HIV positive, but who have not received protective treatment.
Symptoms of AIDS
Symptoms of AIDS differ from one case to another, and according to the specific stage of the disease.
1. Symptoms of the early stage of inflammation
In the early stages of exposure to the AIDS virus, no symptoms or signs of AIDS may appear, although it is very common in AIDS that flu-like symptoms appear and quickly disappear after two to four weeks from the moment of exposure to the AIDS virus.
Symptoms of AIDS may include the following
high body temperature
Swelling in the lymph nodes.
Skin rash.
If someone has been exposed to the AIDS virus, it is possible to pass the AIDS virus to other people even if they do not show any symptoms of AIDS. Once the AIDS virus enters the body, the immune system becomes vulnerable to attack.
The AIDS virus reproduces and multiplies itself in the lymph nodes, and then begins the slow process of destroying T-lymphocytes (T-CD4) lymphocytes, which are the white blood cells responsible for coordinating all the processes and activities of the immune system.
2. Symptoms of the advanced stage of inflammation
In the advanced stages of AIDS, the person may not experience any symptoms during a period ranging from one to nine years, and perhaps more than that in some cases.
But in the meantime, the AIDS virus continues to multiply and multiply itself, as well as systematically destroying the cells of the immune system. At this stage, the infected person may have some chronic symptoms of AIDS, such as:
Swollen lymph nodes.
Diarrhea.
Weight loss.
high body temperature
Cough.
Shortness of breath.
3. Symptoms of the last stages of inflammation
In the last stages of AIDS symptoms and HIV infection, which is after 10 years or more from exposure to HIV for the first time, the most serious symptoms of AIDS begin to appear, and then the infection becomes in a state that can be called AIDS.
In the year 1993, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States of America developed a new definition of AIDS, this definition states: AIDS is a disease if the AIDS virus is found in the body, and this can be confirmed if the results of tests show the presence of antibodies to the AIDS virus in the blood accompanied by one of The following symptoms of AIDS:
The emergence of an opportunistic infection: It occurs when the immune system is weak or infected, as in the case of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia - PCP.
T-lymphocytes: The number of T-lymphocytes is 200 or less. A healthy value should be between 800 - 1200.
As AIDS develops and worsens, the damage to the immune system intensifies and weakens more and more, which makes the body easy prey for opportunistic infections.
Symptoms of AIDS and some of these infections include the following
Excessive night sweats.
Chills or fever above 38°C that lasts for several weeks.
Dry cough and shortness of breath.
Chronic diarrhea.
Permanent white dots or strange wounds on the tongue and in the oral cavity.
a headache.
Blurred or disturbed vision.
Weight loss.
In a more advanced stage of AIDS, additional symptoms may appear, such as
Constant, inexplicable fatigue.
Excessive night sweats.
Chills or fever above 38°C that lasts for several weeks.
Swollen lymph nodes that persist for more than three months.
Chronic diarrhea.
Constant headache.
HIV infection also increases the risk of certain types of cancer, particularly Kaposi''s sarcoma, laryngeal cancer, and lymphoma, although the risk of developing these diseases can be reduced with preventive treatments.
4. Symptoms of AIDS in children
The symptoms of AIDS in a child include
Problems with gaining weight.
growth problems
Walking problems.
slowing of mental development
Infection with common inflammatory diseases such as: ear infections, pneumonia, and tonsillitis.
Causes and risk factors for AIDS
AIDS virus
HIV infection may occur in several ways, including the following
1. Sexual intercourse
They are the most important causes of AIDS, and HIV infection can be transmitted through vaginal, oral, or anal sexual contact with a partner who carries HIV when one of these things enters the body, such as: blood, semen, or vaginal secretions.
Common use of sex toys that have not been washed and cleaned or that have not been wrapped in a clean condom between use and another transmits infection as the HIV virus lives in semen or vaginal secretions that enter the body during sexual intercourse through small cuts or tears sometimes found in the vagina or in the rectum.
If a person has another STI, they are at greater risk of contracting HIV. Contrary to what researchers thought in the past, even women who use spermicides are also at risk of contracting HIV.
This is because this spermicide irritates the inner mucous membrane of the vagina, which can cracks and tears through which the HIV virus can enter the body.
2. Infection with HIV from infected blood
In some cases, the AIDS virus can be transmitted through blood or blood derivatives that are given to a person by intravenous injection, which is one of the common causes of AIDS.
Since 1985, hospitals and blood banks in the United States have been examining donated blood for any antibodies to HIV that may be present in them. These tests have greatly reduced the risks of exposure to HIV from intravenous transfusion as well as improved screening and filtering of donors.
3. Injection needles
HIV is easily transmitted by inflamed needles or syringes that have come into contact with contaminated blood. Using common IV equipment increases the risk of exposure to HIV and other viral diseases, such as hepatitis.
The best way to prevent HIV infection is to abstain from using intravenous drugs. If this possibility is not available, the risk of infection can be reduced by using sterile, single-use injection equipment.
4. Accidental needle prick
The possibility of HIV transmission between HIV carriers and medical staff by an accidental needle prick is very small, and professionals tend to estimate the chance at less than 1%.
5. Transmission of HIV from a mother to her child
Statistics indicate that about 600,000 young children are infected with HIV annually, whether during pregnancy or as a result of breastfeeding, but the risk of infection of the fetus with HIV infection when the mother takes treatment for HIV during pregnancy is very much reduced.
In the United States of America, the majority of women undergo early tests to detect HIV antibodies, and drugs are available to treat retroviruses.
But the situation in developing countries is different, where the majority of women lack awareness of their health conditions and the possibility of contracting HIV, and where the opportunities and possibilities for HIV treatment are often very limited or not available at all.
When medicines are not available, it is preferable to give birth by caesarean section instead of a regular vaginal delivery, but other possibilities and natives, such as vaginal sterilization, for example, have not been proven to be effective.
6. Other ways of transmitting HIV infection
There are rare cases in which the AIDS virus can be transmitted when organs or tissues are transplanted, or through dental tools if they are not sterilized properly.
AIDS complications
Here are the most important complications that can result from HIV infection
1. Infection
Inflammation caused by the AIDS virus weakens the immune system, which makes a person who is infected with the AIDS virus susceptible to many infectious diseases caused by germs, viruses, fungi, or parasites.
The body also becomes susceptible to certain types of cancer, but the treatment of AIDS with antiretroviral drugs has significantly reduced the number of opportunistic infections and the various types of cancer that attack patients with HIV.
It can be assumed that these infections will appear in people who did not receive any treatment, and include the following:
Bacterial infections
There are many germs that may lead to bacterial pneumonia, which can arise spontaneously from infection in the lung itself or as a result of infection in the upper respiratory airways due to a cold or flu.
Mycobacterium avium complex - MAC
It is an infection caused by a group of microorganisms. These bacteria usually cause inflammation in the respiratory tract, but if AIDS has reached its advanced stages and the T-lymphocyte count falls below 50, it is likely to develop multisystem inflammation capable of infecting almost any organ from Internal body organs, including the bone marrow, liver, or spleen.
This inflammation causes a range of symptoms, such as: high body temperature, night sweats, weight loss, abdominal pain, and diarrhea.
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