DIANA HEALED OF AIDS.
a total healing from God.. Halleluyah!
HIV is a virus that targets and alters the immune
system, increasing the risk and impact of other
infections and diseases. Without treatment, the
infection might progress to an advanced disease
stage called AIDS.
However, modern advances in treatment mean that people living
with HIV in countries with good access to healthcare very rarely
develop AIDS once they are receiving treatment.
The life expectancy of a person who carries the HIV virus is
now approaching that of a person that tests negative for the
virus, as long as they adhere to a combination of medications
called antiretroviral therapy (ART) on an ongoing basis.
A Kaiser Permanente study in 2016 suggested that between
1996 and 2016, the gap in life expectancy between people who
are HIV positive and HIV negative closed from 44 years to 12
years .
The World Health Organization (WHO) also advises that a
person living with HIV can resume a high quality of life with
treatment, and that 20.9 million people worldwide were
receiving ART as of mid-2017.
In this article, we explain HIV and AIDS, their symptoms,
causes, and treatments.
What is HIV?
While HIV is a life-changing illness, a person can live a long and
full live with it.
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus that attacks
immune cells called CD4 cells, which are a type of T cell.
These are white blood cells that move around the body,
detecting faults and anomalies in cells as well as infections.
When HIV targets and infiltrates these cells, it reduces the
body's ability to combat other diseases.
This increases the risk and impact of opportunistic infections
and cancers . However, a person can carry HIV without
experiencing symptoms for a long time.
HIV is a lifelong infection. However, receiving treatment and
managing the disease effectively can prevent HIV from reaching
a severe level and reduce the risk of a person passing on the
virus.
What is AIDS?
AIDS is the most advanced stage of HIV infection. Once HIV
infection develops into AIDS, infections and cancer pose a
greater risk.
Without treatment, HIV infection is likely to develop into AIDS as
the immune system gradually wears down. However, advances
in ART mean than an ever-decreasing number of people
progress to this stage.
By the close of 2015, around 1,122,900 people were HIV-
positive. To compare, figures from 2016 show that medical
professionals diagnosed AIDS in an estimated 18,160 people.
Causes
People transmit HIV in bodily fluids, including:
blood
semen
vaginal secretions
anal fluids
breast milk
In the United States, the main causes of this transfer of fluids
are:
anal or vaginal intercourse with a person who has HIV
while not using a condom or PrEP, a preventive HIV
medication for people at high risk of infection
sharing equipment for injectable illicit drugs, hormones,
and steroids with a person who has HIV
A woman living with HIV who is pregnant or has recently given
birth might transfer the disease to her child during pregnancy,
childbirth, or breastfeeding.
The risk of HIV transmitting through blood transfusions is
extremely low in countries that have effective screening
procedures in place for blood donations.
Undetectable = untransmittable
To transmit HIV, these fluids must contain enough of the virus.
If a person has 'undetectable' HIV, they will not transmit HIV to
another person, even if after a transfer of fluids.
Undetectable HIV is when the amount of HIV in the body is so
low that a blood test cannot detect it. People may be able to
achieve undetectable levels of HIV by closely following the
prescribed course of treatment.
Confirming and regularly monitoring undetectable status using a
blood test is important, as this does not mean that the person
no longer has HIV. Undetectable HIV relies on the person
adhering to their treatment, as well as the effectiveness of the
treatment itself.
Progression to AIDS
The risk of HIV progressing to AIDS varies widely between
individuals and depends on many factors, including:
the age of the individual
the body's ability to defend against HIV
access to high-quality, sanitary healthcare
the presence of other infections
the individual's genetic inheritance resistance to certain
strains of HIV
drug-resistant strains of HIV
Symptoms
For the most part, infections by other bacteria, viruses, fungi, or
parasites cause the more severe symptoms of HIV.
These conditions tend to progress further in people who live
with HIV than in individuals with healthy immune systems. A
correctly functioning immune system would protect the body
against the more advanced effects of infections, and HIV
disrupts this process.
Early symptoms of HIV infection
Sweats are an early sign of HIV, but many people do not know
they have the disease for years.
Some people with HIV do not show symptoms until months or
even years after contracting the virus.
However, around 80 percent of people may develop a set of
flu-like symptoms known as acute retroviral syndrome around
2–6 weeks after the virus enters the body.
The early symptoms of HIV infection may include:
fever
chills
joint pain
muscle aches
sore throat
sweats. particularly at night
enlarged glands
a red rash
tiredness
weakness
unintentional weight loss
thrush
These symptoms might also result from the immune system
fighting off many types of viruses.
However, people who experience several of these symptoms
and know of any reason they might have been at risk of
contracting HIV over the last 6 weeks should take a test.
Asymptomatic HIV
In many cases, after the symptoms of acute retroviral
syndrome, symptoms might not occur for many years.
During this time, the virus continues to develop and cause
immune system and organ damage. Without medication that
prevents the replication of the virus, this slow process can
continue for an average of around 10 years.
A person living with HIV often experiences no symptoms, feels
well, and appears healthy.
Complying rigidly to a course of ART can disrupt this phase and
suppress the virus completely. Taking effective antiretroviral
medications for life can halt on-going damage to the immune
system.
Late-stage HIV infection
Without medication, HIV weakens the ability to fight infection.
The person becomes vulnerable to serious illnesses. This stage
is known as AIDS or stage 3 HIV.
Symptoms of late-stage HIV infection may include:
blurred vision
diarrhea, which is usually persistent or chronic
dry cough
a fever of over 100 °F (37 °C) lasting for weeks
night sweats
permanent tiredness
shortness of breath, or dyspnea
swollen glands lasting for weeks
unintentional weight loss
white spots on the tongue or mouth
During late-stage HIV infection, the risk of developing a life-
threatening illness increases greatly. A person with late-stage
HIV can control, prevent and treat serious conditions by taking
other medications alongside HIV treatment.
Opportunistic infections
Toxoplasmosis, found in cat and animal feces, is a dangerous
opportunistic infection for people who have AIDS.
HIV treatment is nowadays often effective enough to keep many
infections at bay.
In reducing the activity of the immune system, late-stage HIV
reduces the ability of the body to combat a range of infections,
diseases, and cancers. Infections that caused minimal or no
health problems before the development of AIDS might pose a
serious health risk once the condition has weakened the
immune system.
Medical professionals refer to these as opportunistic infections
(OIs). Once any of these infections occur, a doctor will
diagnose AIDS.
These include:
Candidiasis of the bronchi, trachea, esophagus, and lungs: As a
fungal infection that normally occurs in the skin and nails, this
frequently causes serious problems in the esophagus and lower
respiratory tract for people with AIDS.
Invasive cervical cancer: This type of cancer begins in the cervix
and spreads to other areas in the body. Regular checks with a
cancer care team can help prevent the cancer or limit the
spread.
Coccidioidomycosis: People sometimes refer to the self-limited
version of this disease in healthy individuals as valley fever.
Inhalation of the fungus Coccidioides immitis causes this
infection.
Cryptococcosis: Cryptococcus neoformans is a fungus that can
infect any part of the body, but most often enters the lungs to
trigger pneumonia or the brain to cause swelling.
Cryptosporidiosis: The protozoan parasite Cryptosporidium
causes this infection that leads to severe abdominal cramps
and watery diarrhea.
Cytomegalovirus disease (CMV): CMV can cause a range of
diseases in the body, including pneumonia, gastroenteritis, and
encephalitis, a brain infection. However, CMV retinitis is of
particular concern in people with late-stage HIV, and it can
infect the retina at the back of the eye, permanently removing
sight. CMV retinitis is a medical emergency.
HIV-related encephalopathy: An acute or chronic HIV infection
can trigger this brain disorder. While doctors do not fully
understand the cause, they consider it to be linked to post-
infection inflammation in the brain.
Herpes simplex (HSV): This virus, usually sexually transmitted or
passed on in childbirth, is extremely common and rarely causes
health issues or causes self-limiting recurrences in people with
healthy immune systems. However, it can reactivate in people
with HIV, causing painful cold sores around the mouth and
ulcers on the genitals and anus that do not resolve. The sores,
rather than a herpes diagnosis, are an indicator of AIDS. HSV
can also infect the breathing tube, lungs, or esophagus of
people with AIDS.
Histoplasmosis: The fungus Histoplasma capsulatum causes
extremely severe, pneumonia-like symptoms in people with
advanced HIV. This condition can become progressive
disseminated histoplasmosis and can impact on organs outside
of the respiratory system.
Chronic intestinal isosporiasis: The parasite Isospora belli can
infect the body through contaminated food and water, causing
diarrhea, fever, vomiting, weight loss, headaches, and abdominal
pain.
Kaposi's sarcoma (KS): Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV),
also known as human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8), causes a cancer
that leads to the growth of abnormal blood vessels anywhere in
the body. If KS reaches organs, such as the intestines or lymph
nodes, it can be extremely dangerous. KS appears as solid
purple or pink spots on the surface of the skin. They might be
flat or raised.
Lymphoma: People refer to cancer of the lymph nodes and
lymphoid tissues as lymphoma, and many different types might
occur. However, Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma have
strong links to HIV infection.
Tuberculosis (TB): The bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis
causes this disease and can transfer in droplets if a person
with an active form of the bacteria sneezes, coughs, or speaks.
TB causes a severe lung infection as well as weight loss, fever,
and tiredness, and can also infect the brain, lymph nodes,
bones, or kidneys.
Mycobacteria, including Mycobacterium avium and
Mycobacterium kansasii: These bacteria occur naturally in the
environment and pose few problems for people with fully-
functioning immune systems. However, they can spread
throughout the body and cause life-threatening health issues for
people with HIV, especially in its later stages.
Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PJP): A fungus called
Pneumocystis jirovecii causes breathlessness, dry cough, and
high fever in people with suppressed immune systems,
including those with HIV.
Recurrent pneumonia: Many different infections can cause
pneumonia, but a bacteria called Streptococcus pneumoniae is
one of its most dangerous causes in people with HIV. Vaccines
are available for this bacteria, and every person who has HIV
should receive vaccination for Streptococcus pneumoniae .
Progressive multifocal encephalopathy (PML): The John
Cunningham (JC) virus occurs in a vast number of people,
usually lying dormant in the kidneys. However, in people with
compromised immune systems, either due to HIV or
medications, such as those for multiple sclerosis (MS), the JC
virus attacks the brain, leading to a dangerous conditon called
progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). PML can be
life-threatening, causing paralysis and cognitive difficulties.
Recurrent Salmonella septicemia: This type of bacteria often
enters the body in contaminated food and water, circulates the
entire body, and overpowers the immune system, causing
nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting.
Toxoplasmosis (toxo): Toxoplasma gondii is a parasite that
inhabits warm-blooded animals, including cats and rodents, and
leaves the body in their feces. Humans contract the diseases
by inhaling contaminated dust or eating contaminated food, but
it can also occur in commercial meats. T. gondii causes severe
infection in the lungs, retina, heart, liver, pancreas, brain, testes,
and colon. Take care to wear protective gloves while changing
cat litter and thoroughly wash the hands afterward.
Wasting syndrome: This occurs when a person involuntarily
loses 10 percent of their muscle mass through diarrhea,
weakness, or fever. Part of the weight loss may also consist of
fat loss.
Prevention
Preventing OIs is key to extending life expectancy with late-
stage HIV. Aside from managing HIV viral load with
medications, a person who lives with the disease must take
precautions, including the following steps:
Wear condoms to prevent other STIs.
Receive vaccinations for potential OIs. Discuss these with
your primary care physician.
Understand the germs in your surrounding environment that
could lead to an OI. A pet cat, for example, could be a
source of toxoplasmosis. Limit exposure and take
precautions, such as wearing protective gloves while
changing litter
Avoid foods that are at risk of contamination, such as
undercooked eggs, unpasteurized dairy and fruit juice, or
raw seed sprouts.
Do not drink water straight from a lake or river or tap water
in certain foreign countries. Drink bottled water or use
water filters.
Ask your doctor about work, home, and vacation activities
to limit exposure to potential OIs.
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