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What is AIDS ?
AIDS is short for: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.
It is a serious condition in which the body's defenses against some illnesses are broken down. People with AIDS develop many different kinds of disease which the body would usually fight off quite easily. It is a syndrome because it encompasses a pattern of different symptoms. It is acquired because AIDS is an infectious disease caused by a virus which is spread from person to person through a variety of routes.
What is HIV ?
HIV is short for Human Immunodeficiency Virus
It is the virus that causes AIDS. HIV can get into our body through a number of routes categorized as the high-risk groups, some of these could be unprotected sex, transfusion of untested blood, indulging in drug use, etc. to name a few. AIDS is different from other immune deficiency conditions due to genetic disorder or due to the use of anti-cancer drugs as it is incurable and the possible routes of the entry of the virus into our body system are very easy if the required precaution is not taken.
As of now there is no known cure for AIDS, only a combination of treatment is available that could extend the life of a HIV+ person ( a person who tests positive for the tests done to detect the presence of HIV is termed as HIV+) but this would ultimately lead to the Full Blown AIDS stage where a person practically has no immune system left and becomes vulnerable to the opportunistic infections would eventually lead to his death. So in this case,
" Prevention is not better than cure, as prevention is the only cure."
How do I know if I am HIV+ ?
There are a few tests that are to be done to check if you are HIV+ or not. You might consider going in for these tests if you
- have had unprotected sex.
- had a blood transfusion done.
- indulged in Intravenous Drug Use.
The tests that determine whether you are HIV+ or not are
ELISA - Enzyme Linked Immuno Sorbent Assay, is a test used to detect HIV antibodies in the blood. It costs around Rs. 100/- at any of the major hospitals.
Western Blot - It is the confirmatory test for HIV and is costlier than ELISA. A person who tests positive for ELISA is advised to undergo another ELISA or a Western Blot.