AIDS

PAULA EVA CARLOTA LIZA

 What is it?
AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome)

■ Acquired means you can get infected with it;

■ Immune Deficiency means a weakness in the body's
system that fights diseases.
■ Syndrome means a group of health problems that make up
a disease.
 Origins
Before the 1980s, researchers estimate that about 100,000 to 300,000 people were
infected with HIV. The earliest case in North America was confirmed in 1968, in Robert
Rayford, a 16-year-old teenager, who never left the Midwest and never received a blood
transfusion. This suggests that HIV and AIDS may have been present in the United States
before 1966.

But before AIDS was identified, the disease presented with other immunodeficiency
conditions like Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia (PCP) and Kaposi sarcoma (KS). A year
after scientists identified AIDS, they discovered the cause: HIV.
HIV vs AIDS
- HIV is a virus
- AIDS is the actual syndrome
 Stigmas
➢ HIV and AIDS are always associated with death
➢ Itis associated with behaviours that some people
disapprove of (such as homosexuality, drug use, sex
work or infidelity)
➢ It is only transmitted through sex, which is a taboo
subject in some cultures
➢ It is infection is the result of personal irresponsibility or
moral fault (such as infidelity) that deserves to be
punished
➢ Inaccurate information about how HIV and AIDS is
transmitted, which creates irrational behaviour and
misperceptions of personal risk.
Common Myths and Misconceptions:
- HIV cannot survive in the air so coughing, sneezing or spitting cannot transmit HIV.
- HIV cannot survive in water either
- It takes about 2 months for the virus to die (when it touches air)
- HIV can be transmitted through dirty needles
- You can have a long life and be diagnosed with AIDS
- It had no cure. It can be controlled but no cure.
 How to prevent the spread of
HIV/AIDS
1. Use a new condom every time you have sex
(anal or vaginal).
2. Tell your partner you have HIV/ AIDS. Be
open about it!
3. Use a clean needle.
4. If you are pregnant, immediately get medical
care. If you are HIV positive, you may pass the
virus to the baby.
5. Intake of nutritious food helps boost
immunity.
Citations
Ellis, Mary Ellen. “HIV vs. AIDS: What’s the Difference?” Health
Line.com, 26 Apr. 2018, www.healthline.com/health/hiv-aids/hiv-vs-aids.

Fisher. “13 Myths About HIV Busted.” Lowcountry AIDS Services, 2017,
www.aids-services.com/news/13-myths-about-hiv-busted/.

Measuring the Economic Gain of Investing in Girls. The World

Bank , Aug. 2011,
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hiv-aids/symptom
s-causes/syc-20373524.