How to Identify When HIV Has Become AIDS

HIV and AIDS effect millions of people worldwide. Many people are aware of the two diseases but may not be sure how they are related. This article will briefly describe what HIV is and how HIV progresses to a diagnosis of AIDS.

Instructions

How to Identify When HIV Has Become AIDS

• 1

  HIV stands for the 'Human Immunodeficiency Virus'. HIV infects cells in the immune system and the central nervous system by damaging the CD4 (also known as T4 or T-helper) that play a crucial role in the immune system. A large reduction in the number of these cells weakens the immune system. A person who has HIV gradually loses the protection of his immune system and begins to experience health problems. These may be fairly small problems at first--skin problems or yeast infections--but over time the illnesses become more serious. The amount of time that it takes HIV to begin to affect a person’s health varies widely from one individual to another. The process usually takes several years. HIV infection can generally be broken down into four distinct stages: primary infection, clinically asymptomatic stage, symptomatic HIV infection and progression from HIV to AIDS.

• 2

  The first stage of infection lasts for a few weeks and is often accompanied by a short flu-like illness. About 20% of people in this stage are the symptomatic enough to consult a doctor. However, the diagnosis of HIV infection is frequently missed during this visit. During this stage there is a large amount of HIV in the blood and the immune system begins to respond to the virus by producing HIV antibodies and cells to fight off the infection. This process is known as seroconversion, which is when a person’s HIV status beings to change from negative to positive. If an HIV test is done before seroconversion is complete, then it may not show up positive yet.

• 3

  The second stage lasts for an average of ten years, and the person is free from major symptoms, although there may be swollen glands. The level of HIV in the blood drops to very low levels, but people remain infectious and HIV antibodies are detectable in the blood, so antibody tests will show a positive result.

• 4

  Over time, the immune system becomes severely damaged by HIV. This is thought to happen due to the lymph nodes and tissues become damaged or 'burnt out' because of the years of activity fighting off the virus, HIV mutates and becomes stronger and more varied, leading to more T helper cell destruction, and the body fails to keep up with replacing the T helper cells that are lost. As the immune system fails, a person with HIV begins to develop more symptoms. Initially, many of the symptoms are mild, but as the immune system deteriorates, the symptoms worsen. Symptomatic HIV infection is mainly caused by the emergence of opportunistic infections and cancers that the immune system would normally prevent. These can occur in almost all the body systems. The most common examples are pneumocystis pneumonia, Kaposi's sarcoma, tuberculosis, herpes simplex, cytomegolavirus, and Candida (yeast) infections. Other symptoms include weight loss or wasting and brain and nervous system disorders.

• 5

  As the immune system becomes more and more damaged, the illnesses that occur become more and more severe leading eventually to an AIDS diagnosis. People with HIV are diagnosed as having AIDS if their CD4 cell count falls below 200 (CD4 cells are immune cells that are damage by HIV) or if they develop any of the serious conditions associated with HIV infection listed in the previous section. These conditions include a number of unusual infections and cancers. It is possible for someone to be very ill with HIV but not have an AIDS diagnosis.