The Human Immunodeficiency Virus: Treatment and Drugs

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With a disease that doesn’t discriminate towards any group, HIV/AIDS is a disease that is impacting the world at an alarming rate. It doesn’t matter your age, sex, race, sexual orientation, this disease impacts every demographic. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2013), “Worldwide, there were about 2.5 million new cases of HIV in 2011. About 34.2 million people are living with HIV around the world.” There are many myths and confusion about this disease, and in this paper I’m going to discuss what HIV and AIDS are, as well as its impact it’s making around the world. Although there is no cure for this disease there are ways that your chances of contracting it are decreased, as well as medical treatments that you can receive to slow the progression.
The human immunodeficiency virus; better known as HIV, was discovered by researchers looking for the cause of AIDS. In 1984 the first discovery of the virus was made. There is some controversy on who had discovered first, but the fact remained that the cause of AIDS was identified. In 1987, researchers formed together and named it the human immunodeficiency virus. This virus takes over the CD4 cells in the immune system and duplicates itself. Although the damage that HIV will produce is extensive, it starts off slowly and then ultimately destroys the immune system. The virus will slowly tear down the body, making it very weak. When the immune system is weak it is more susceptible to opportunistic infections. When the CD4 cells, or immune cells have reached levels below 200, HIV has now progressed towards AIDS other known as auto immune deficiency syndrome
When there are certain symptoms of HIV present all at once it is then diagnosed as auto immune deficiency s...

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...ids-101/how-you-get-hiv-aids/
AIDS Info. (2013, September 27). HIV prevention. Retrieved from http://aidsinfo.nih.gov/education-materials/fact-sheets/20/48/the-basics-of-hiv-prevention
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2013, April 23). Statistics overview. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/statistics/basics/index.html
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2013, May 22). HIV incidence. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/statistics/surveillance/incidence/index.html
HIV Health Reform. (2014). Living with HIV? 5 facts. Retrieved from http://www.hivhealthreform.org/living-with-hiv/
Mayo Clinic. (2012, August 11). Treatments and drugs. Retrieved from http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hiv-aids/basics/treatment/con-20013732
Office of NIH History (n.d.). Discovery of HIV. Retrieved from http://history.nih.gov/NIHInOwnWords/docs/page_04.html

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