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What is HIV?

   
 

"I caught TB and it spread to all my organs; I was almost dead."
Rufo Guerro

Read Rufo's story >>

"I am not happy I am sick. I am not happy I have AIDS."
Rock Hudson, Actor, shortly before he died of AIDS in 1985

"Everyone thought I was going to die like a year later," Johnson said. "They didn't know. So I helped educate sports, and then the world, that a man living with HIV can play basketball. He's not going to give it to anybody by playing basketball."
Magic Johnson, American Basketball Player
 

 

Have a look at our
HIV film here >>Movie link

HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

HIV infects and gradually destroys an infected person's immune system, reducing their protection against infection and cancers.

Initially, someone living with HIV may show no symptoms of HIV infection as their immune system manages to control it. However, in most cases the immune system will need help from anti-HIV drugs to keep the HIV infection under control. These drugs do not completely rid the body of HIV infection.

How do you get HIV?

HIV can be passed on via infected blood (blood on blood contact) body fluids such as semen, vaginal fluids or breast milk.

The most common forms of transmission are having unprotected sex with a person living with HIV, sharing infected needles, syringes and other types of infected injecting equipment. An HIV positive mother can pass on HIV to her child during pregnancy, childbirth and breast feeding, though medication can be used to minimise the chances of this.

What are the long-term implications?

At first coming to terms with HIV can be hard and the drug treatments when taken can take some getting use to. However, if HIV is diagnosed in a person early on and they respond to their treatment, with the right support from those around them there is no reason why someone that is HIV positive can not live a full, active and healthy life.

Are there any treatments for HIV?

  • Antiretroviral treatment is the main type of treatment for HIV. It is not a cure, but it can stop people from becoming ill for many years. The treatment consists of drugs that have to be taken every day, possibly for the rest of a person’s life.

  • The drugs given to HIV patients are usually referred to as Antiretrovirals, Anti-HIV drugs, HIV antiviral drugs or AVRs.

  • The aim of antiretroviral treatment is to keep the amount of HIV in the body at a low level. This stops any weakening of the immune system and allows it to recover from any damage that HIV might have caused already.

  • Taking two or more antiretroviral drugs at a time is called combination therapy. Taking a combination of three or more anti-HIV drugs is sometimes referred to as Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART).

  • If only one drug was to be taken then the HIV virus would quickly become resistant to it. Taking two or three means the chances of the virus developing a resistance vastly decreases. There are around 20 different approved antiretroviral drugs but not all are licensed or available in every country. (*)