What is AIDS and HIV?

Syndrome of acquired immune deficiency is a violation of the normal activity of the human immune system, which develops under the influence of HIV infection. The clinical picture of this disease has a variety of manifestations. What is AIDS, everyone should know today. The main sign by which the presence of this disease can be determined is the CD4 + blood test for determining the number of T-lymphocytes. This analysis indicates the degree of suppression of immune system activity by the immunodeficiency virus. The content of CD4 cells in the blood of a person with a negative indication of HIV infection can be from 600 to 1800 cells / ml of blood. The stage of AIDS begins with a CD4 + reading below 200 cells / ml of blood. In different periods of life, depending on the state of health, this indicator can be different.

The number of CD4 cells falls 2 or 3 weeks after infection of the patient. As the resistance of the body, this indicator again rises, but already to a level below the initial index. This level, which is a CD4 control point, stabilizes for 3 to 6 months from the time of infection. On the question of what HIV and AIDS are, you can answer in the following way: these are different degrees of damage to the body's resistance. The degree of damage to the immune system characterizes the level of T-lymphocytes, whose annual incidence in an infected person is on the average 50 cells / mm3. In most people, the immune system effectively controls HIV, whose targeted treatment is not required for many years.

At the stage of AIDS - the maximum damage to the protective functions of the body - in HIV-infected patients a large number of opportunistic infections and the presence of tumor diseases are found. On the question of what AIDS is, one can unequivocally answer: this is the last stage of the defeat of the immune system, which is so weakened that any disease very quickly reaches the ultimate goal of its development. A person with AIDS becomes an easy prey for various viruses and bacteria, he can die from a common cold or die in a matter of days, becoming infected with an infection. The bright symptoms of the manifestation of AIDS include severe weight loss, weakness, chills, fever, increased sweating at night, and an increased level of cancers. If in the early stages of HIV infection a person can not guess for years that he is infected, then at the terminal stage of the infection the patient understands well what AIDS is.

First of all, HIV affects such immune cells as T-lymphocytes, dendritic cells and macrophages. Infected cells eventually die, which is due to their direct destruction by the virus and the gradual destruction of CD8 + cells by T lymphocytes. The population of CD4 + T-lymphocytes is gradually decreasing, which leads to a decrease in cellular immunity, and when their content reaches a critical level, the human body becomes an easy prey for opportunistic infections. Today, every person should understand what AIDS and HIV are, and always be on guard against deadly danger.

The source of HIV is an infected person. Infection occurs through contact of the liquid medium of the body with the patient. The source can be blood, vaginal secretion, sperm and breast milk. Thus, HIV infection can occur through sexual contact (vaginal, oral and anal), using one syringe with an infected patient, during a blood transfusion, as well as from a sick mother to a child at birth and feeding. Therefore, one should never forget about what AIDS is, what its consequences may be, and observe the maximum cleanliness with respect to the listed items. You should always remain vigilant, but you do not have to worry too much about your everyday life. HIV is not transmitted by shaking hands, with blood donation, from sharing food with an infected person, through insect bites and bathing in some water.