Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What is HIV?
Q.
What is AIDS? What causes AIDS?
Q.
How does HIV cause AIDS?
Q.
How long does it take for HIV to cause AIDS?
Q.
How do people get infected with HIV?
Q.
How many people are oftected with HIV?
Q.
Why is the AIDS epidemic considered so serious?
Q. How can I avoid being infected
through sex?
Q. Does the
presence of other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) facilitate HIV transmission?
Q. Why is early treatment
of STD important?
Q.
Is there a vaccine for HIV/AIDS?
Q.
Do people living with HIV/AIDS have special rights or responsibilities?
Q. Who should provide care to HIV/AIDS
affected persons?
Q.
Why are people safe from HIV infection during work?
Q.
What about working every day in close physical contact with an infected person?
Q. How is HIV Treated?
Q. What Can I Do To Avoid
Getting HIV Infection?
Q.
How Can I Tell If I Have HIV Infection?
Q.
If I Am HIV Positive, What Should I Do?
Q.
Is There a Cure?
Q. Do
Condoms Work?
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Q. What is HIV?
Ans. HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is the virus that causes AIDS. This
virus is passed from one person to another through blood-to-blood and sexual contact.
In addition, infected pregnant women can pass HIV to their baby during pregnancy
or delivery, as well as through breast-feeding. People with HIV have what is called
HIV infection. Most of these people will develop AIDS as a result of their HIV
infection.
These body
fluids have been proven to spread HIV:
blood
semen
vaginal fluid
breast milk
other body fluids
containing blood
These are additional body fluids that may transmit
the virus that health care workers may come into contact with:
cerebrospinal
fluid surrounding the brain and the spinal cord
synovial
fluid surrounding bone joints
amniotic
fluid surrounding a fetus
Q. What is AIDS? What causes AIDS?
Ans.
AIDS stands for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. An HIV-infected person receives
a diagnosis of AIDS after developing one of the defined AIDS indicator illnesses.
A positive HIV test result does not mean that a person has AIDS. A diagnosis of
AIDS is made by a physician using certain clinical criteria (e.g., AIDS indicator
illnesses).
Infection with HIV can weaken the immune system to the point
that it has difficulty fighting off certain infections. These types of infections
are known as "opportunistic" infections because they take the opportunity
a weakened immune system gives to cause illness.
Many of the infections
that cause problems or may be life-threatening for people with AIDS are usually
controlled by a healthy immune system. The immune system of a person with AIDS
is weakened to the point that medical intervention may be necessary to prevent
or treat serious illness.
Today there
are medical treatments that can slow down the rate at which HIV weakens the immune
system. There are other treatments that can prevent or cure some of the illnesses
associated with AIDS. As with other diseases, early detection offers more options
for treatment and preventative care.
Q.
How does HIV cause AIDS?
Ans. HIV destroys a certain kind of
blood cells--CD4+ T cells (helper cells)--which are crucial to the normal function
of the human immune system. In fact, loss of these cells in people with HIV is
an extremely powerful predictor of the development of AIDS. Studies of thousands
of people have revealed that most people infected with HIV carry the virus for
years before enough damage is done to the immune system for AIDS to develop. However,
recently developed sensitive tests have shown a strong connection between the
amount of HIV in the blood and the decline in CD4+ T cell numbers and the development
of AIDS. Reducing the amount of virus in the body with anti-HIV drugs can slow
this immune destruction.
Q.
How long does it take for HIV to cause AIDS?
Ans. Since 1992,
scientists have estimated that about half the people with HIV develop AIDS within
10 years after becoming infected. This time varies greatly from person to person
and can depend on many factors, including a person's health status and their health-related
behaviors.
Today there are medical treatments that can slow down the rate
at which HIV weakens the immune system. There are other treatments that can prevent
or cure some of the illnesses associated with AIDS, though the treatments do not
cure AIDS itself. As with other diseases, early detection offers more options
for treatment and preventative health care.
Q.
How do people get infected with HIV?
Ans. HIV is transmitted
mostly through semen and vaginal fluids during unprotected sex without the use
of condoms. Globally, most cases of sexual transnmission involve men and women,
although, in some developed countries homosexual activity remains the primary
mode. Besides sexual intercourse, HIV can also be transmitted during drug injection
by the sharing of needles contaminated with infected blood; by the transfusion,
of infected blood or blood products; and from an infected woman to her baby -
before birth, during birth or just after delivery.
HIV is not spread through
ordinary social contact; for example by shaking hand, travelling in the same bus,
eating from the same utensils, by hugging or kissing. Mosquitoes and insects do
not spread the virus nor is it water-borne or air-borne.
Q.
How many people are oftected with HIV?
Ans. According to UNAIDS
estimates, by December-2003, nearly 34-46 million people including over 2.5 million
children - had been infected with HIV since the start of the epidemic.
Number
of people living with HIV/AIDS Total 40 million (34 – 46 million)
Adults
37 million (31 – 43 million)
Children
under 15 years 2.5 million (2.1 – 2.9 million)
People
newly infected with HIV in 2003 Total 5 million (4.2 – 5.8 million)
4.2
million (3.6 – 4.8 million)
Children
under 15 years 700 000 (590 000 – 810 000)
AIDS
deaths in 2003 Total 3 million (2.5 – 3.5 million)
Adults
2.5 million (2.1 – 2.9 million)
Children
under 15 years 500 000 (420 000 – 580 000)
Q.
Why is the AIDS epidemic considered so serious?
Ans. AIDS affects
people primarily when they are most productive and leads to premature death thereby
severely affecting the socio-economic structure of whole families, communities
and countries. Besides, AIDS is not curable and since HIV is transmitted predominantly
through sexual contact, and with sexual practices being essentially a private
domain, these issues are difficult to address.
Q.
How can I avoid being infected through sex?
Ans. You can avoid
HIV infection by abstaining from sex, by having a mutually faithful monogamous
sexual relationship with an uninfected partner or by practicing safer sex. Safer
sex involves the correct use of a condom during each sexual encounter and also
includes non-penetrative sex.
Q.
Does the presence of other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) facilitate HIV
transmission?
Ans. Yes. Every STD causes some damage to the genital
skin and mucous layer, which facilitates the entry of HIV into the body.
Q. Why is early treatment
of STD important?
Ans. High rates of STD caused by unprotected
sexual activity enhance the transmission risk in the general population. Early
treatment of STD reduces the risk of spread to other sexual partners and also
reduces the risk of contracting HIV from infected partners. Besides, early treatment
of STD also prevents infertility and ectopic pregnancies.
Q.
Is there a vaccine for HIV/AIDS?
Ans. While there is currently no
vaccine for HIV/AIDS, research is under way and may take at least 8 to 10 years.
Q. Do people living with
HIV/AIDS have special rights or responsibilities?
Ans. Since everyone
is entitled to fundamental human rights without discrimination, people living
with HIV/AIDS have the same rights as seronegative people to education, employment,
health, travel, marriage, procreation, privacy, social security, scientific benefits,
asylum, etc. Seronegative and seropositive people share responsibility for avoiding
HIV infection/re-infection. But many people, including women, children and teenagers,
cannot negotiate safe sex because of their low status in society or, lack of personal
power. Therefore, men whether knowingly infected or unaware of their HIV status,
have a special responsibility of not putting others at risk.
Q.
Who should provide care to HIV/AIDS affected persons?
Ans. Everyone
in contact with an HIV/AIDS person is a potential care provider. In particular,
this includes health care workers at various levels of the health care delivery
system, social workers and counsellors, and close family members who are important
care providers at home. Care basically involves clinical management, nursing care,counseling
and social support.
Q.
Why are people safe from HIV infection during work?
Ans. In adults,
the virus is mainly transmitted through the transfer of blood or sexual fluids.
Since contact with blood or sexual fluids is not part of most people's work, most
workers are safe.
Q. What
about working every day in close physical contact with an infected person?
Ans. There are no risks involved. You may share the same telephone with other
people in your office or work side by side in a crowded factory with other HIV
infected persons, even share the same cup of tea, but this will not expose you
to the risk of contracting the infection. Being in contact with dirt and sweat
will also not give you the infection.
Q.
How is HIV Treated?
Ans. Currently there is no way to get rid of all
the virus once a person is infected. However, new medicines can slow the damage
that HIV causes to the immune system. Also, doctors are getting better at treating
the illnesses that are caused by HIV infection. Many people now consider HIV infection
a manageable, long-term illness.
Q.
What Can I Do To Avoid Getting HIV Infection?
Ans. Six Ways To Reduce
Risk
Abstain from vaginal, anal, and oral sex. Many other
things feel good and are safe, because no blood, semen, or vaginal secretions
get into the body. Safe activities include hugging, cuddling, masturbating, kissing,
fantasizing, body-to-body rubbing, and massage.
Use condoms.
Unless you're 100% sure your sexual partner is not infected with HIV or other
STDs, reduce your risk by using a latex condom (rubber) on the penis from start
to finish every time you have anal, vaginal, or oral sex. The female condom can
also help protect you. Learn to talk with your partner about condoms and safer
sex. Condoms can protect both of you from many STDs.
If you
use lubricant, use one that is water-based. Lubricants containing oil (such as
Vaseline) might cause latex condoms to break.
If you use spermicidal
(birth control) foams and jellies, use them along with condoms, not in place of
condoms. The effectiveness of spermicides in preventing HIV is unknown.
If you shoot drugs, seek help. And never share needles.
Avoid
mixing alcohol or other drugs with sexual activities-they might cloud your judgment
and lead you to engage in unsafe sexual practices.
Q.
How Can I Tell If I Have HIV Infection?
Ans. The only way to know
for sure if you have this virus is by taking a blood test called the "HIV
Antibody Test." Some people call it the "HIV Test" or the "AIDS
Test," even though this test alone cannot tell you if you have AIDS. The
HIV test can tell you if you have the virus and can pass it to others in the ways
already described. The test is not a part of your regular blood tests-you have
to ask for it by name. It is a very accurate test.
If your test result
is "positive," it means you have HIV infection and could benefit from
special medical care. Additional tests can tell you how strong your immune system
is and whether drug therapy is indicated. Some people stay healthy for a long
time with HIV infection, while others develop serious illness and AIDS more rapidly.
Scientists do not know why people respond in different ways to HIV infection.
If your test is "negative," and you have not had any possible risk for
HIV for six months prior to taking the test, it means you do not have HIV infection.
You can stay free of HIV by following prevention guidelines. (In the past five
years, one study indicated that a few people with HIV infection took longer than
six months to test "positive." This is an extremely rare possibility.)
Less than 2% of all people who test for HIV get an "inconclusive result."
This means this test cannot determine whether or not they have the virus. Repeat
testing is recommended.
Q.
If I Am HIV Positive, What Should I Do?
Ans. If you've tested positive
for HIV, consider the following:
See
a health care professional for a complete medical work-up for HIV infection and
advice on treatment and health maintainance. Make sure you are tested for TB and
other STDs. For women, this includes a regular gynecological exam.
Inform
your sexual partner(s) about their possible risk for HIV. Your local health department
has a partner notification program that can assist you.
Protect
others from the virus by following the precautions talked about on this page (for
example, always using condoms and not sharing needles with others).
Protect
yourself from any additional exposure to HIV.
Avoid
drug and alcohol use, practice good nutrition, and avoid fatigue and stress.
Seek support from
trustworthy friends and family when possible, and consider getting professional
counseling.
Find
a support group of people who are going through similar experiences.
Do
not donate blood, plasma, semen, body organs, or other tissue.
Q.
Is There a Cure?
Ans. At this time, there is no cure for HIV. HIV
is a virus, and medical science has never found a cure for any virus. This has
made the search for a cure for HIV very difficult.
Since this is the current
reality, it is important that those people who are not infected with HIV stay
negative and those living with HIV/AIDS stay healthy. For people infected with
HIV, there are more treatments now than ever before. Some of these treatments
are for fighting the virus, others are to treat opportunistic infections that
may occur if someone's immune system is compromised.
Q.
Do Condoms Work?
Ans. Like seatbelts or bike helmets, condoms can't
offer 100 percent protection; and sex with condoms can feel different from unprotected
sex. The risks associated with not using condoms, such as getting pregnant, getting
HIV, sexually transmitted infections (STD's) such as hepatitis and chlamydia,
or just having to worry about it, make condoms well worth the hassle.
For
free information, HIV testing, medical care and support please contact: Project
concern international's PATHWAY Project, 8, Panini society, Santnagar, Aranyeshwar,
Pune-9 on the following telephone numbers:
24222717or
24222334 or 24221638
