[Biology Class Notes] on Difference Between AIDS And HIV Pdf

What Is AIDS?

AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. Acquired means you can get infected with it, Immune deficiency means the immune system that helps the body to fight with the diseases are weak, syndrome means a group of health problems that makes a disease. AIDS is caused by an infectious virus called Human Immunodeficiency Virus. HIV causes AIDS and interferes with the body’s ability to fight with the infections. A person does not get affected by AIDS; he/she might get infected with HIV, and later they might develop AIDS. AIDS is the last stage of HIV infection that happens when the body’s immune system is severely damaged because of the virus. Hence, a small brief about what is aids actually.

What Is HIV?

HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus. HIV is a virus that attacks cells that helps the body fight infection, making the person weaker with the immune system and more vulnerable to other infections and diseases. It is spread with contact to certain body fluids including blood, semen, vaginal and rectal fluids and breast milk of an infected person, a person with HIV, most commonly during sex (SEX without a protection or HIV medicine to prevent or treat HIV), or through sharing injection drug equipment of others. If the person is not treated, then HIV can lead to the disease of AIDS. Our human body cannot get rid of HIV, and there does not exist a cure for active HIV. So, once you get HIV positive, you have it for life. If a person gets affected by HIV, the body will make “antibodies” or unique immune molecules to fight HIV.

Is HIV Curable?

To understand this , we need to keep in mind what is hiv as stated above. By taking HIV medicine called antiretroviral Therapy or ART, people with HIV can at least live long and healthy lives if not cured and also can prevent transmitting HIV to their sexual partners. There are additionally effective methods too, to avoid getting HIV through sex or drug use, a person can use pre-exposure prophylaxis(PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis(PEP).  In the U.S., people having HIV positive do not lead to AIDS as a continuous intake of HIV medicine stops the progression of AIDS.  

What Is The Difference Between HIV And AIDS?

Difference between HIV and AIDS are:

HIV is the acronym for human Deficiency Virus, whereas AIDS is the acronym for Acquired Deficiency Syndrome. In the case of HIV, the virus that invades the immunity system whereas in the case of AIDS the last stage of the spectrum of conditions, initially caused by the infection of HIV. In the case of HIV, patients will suffer minor difficulties; symptoms will be similar to flu, whereas, in the case of AIDS, patients will experience severe signs and symptoms, disrupting the quality of life. A person having HIV may not have AIDS, but a person having AIDS will have HIV. HIV can be diagnosed with a simple test, whereas AIDS diagnosis is a bit more complicated. If a person infected with HIV, your immune system produces antibodies against the virus, and these antibodies can be detected by a blood or saliva test, whereas diagnosing AIDS involves a count of CD4 cells. Still, since its the final stage of HIV, it can go undiagnosed until it’s too late.

So these are a few differences between HIV and AIDS. Yes, these two terms are not similar. People often get confused between the two words because both the public and the medical literature have had a tendency to use HIV and AIDS interchangeably.  

Solved Examples

Question 1: Is there any link between HIV/AIDS medication non-adherence and psychological distress?

Answer: There are several reasons that may lead to non-adherence among HIV infected patients, including side effects of antiretroviral, miserable quality life, and psychological distress is one of them.

Question 2: Does circumcision prevent HIV or AIDS?

Answer: Most studies say that circumcision reduces transmission to the male partner by up to 60%. However, there is no proof that it reduces transmission from males to females.   

Did You Know

Anyone can get HIV, men and women are usual, but transgender or bisexuals can also get HIV. The death toll from AIDS is astronomic.  You may not know if you have HIV. The only way to see if you have got HIV positive is to get tested. HIV prevention is vital. The best way to prevent HIV is to always to have safer sex and avoid using drug paraphernalia needles.