AIDS and Its Effects
AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) was first reported in the United States in 1981. It is caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The term AIDS applies to the most advanced stages of HIV infections. "Official criteria for the definition of AIDS are developed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which is responsible for tracking the spread of AIDS in the United States." "The 1993 CDC definition of AIDS includes all HIV infected people who have fewer than 200 CD4 T-cells. (Healthy adults usually have CD4 T-cell counts of 1,000 or more.)" Worldwide, more than 3 million people became infected with HIV during 1996. As of December 1996, nearly 22 million people were living with HIV/AIDS, which shows that AIDS still rages out of control. HIV kills or impairs cells of the immune system and ultimately it dismantles the body's ability to fight infections and certain cancers. HIV is transmitted through blood and semen. "The virus belongs to a class of viruses known as retroviruses because of their unique ability to transcribe their genetic material (RNA) into DNA and actually insert that piece of DNA in the DNA of the host cell." There are various properties that make HIV infections u
"There are only three possible ways to prevent AIDS: a vaccine to protect the uninfected, a curative treatment for the infected persons, or the adoption of behaviors that will not spread the virus." Due to the nature of the virus and the variability of the envelope proteins no overall vaccine can be expected soon, but vaccines are being developed. When a person becomes infected with HIV, that person may develop any of a variety of manifestations. The disease is similar to many other infectious diseases is there is a broad range of host responses. After some people are infected they develop an inability to fight off other infections and die. The special name for the syndrome is AIDS. Others have the same infection but have less serious levels of immune depression but they do have weight loss, diarrhea, and other symptoms. "AIDS-Related Complex" or ARC is used to describe these people. It really does not matter which syndrome a person has because most people will suffer severe medical consequences because of the infection. "Ten years after infection, more than 50 percent will develop AIDS without treatment. Some scientists estimate that 75 to 100 percent of the infected persons will develop AIDS after fifteen or twenty years of follow up." Some HIV infected persons develop a loss of intellect or dementia. Scientists believe that this is related to the HIV infection macrophages in the brain. "More than 500,000 cases of AIDS have been reported since 1981. As many as 900,000 Americans may be infected with HIV." The epidemic is growing most rapidly among minority populations and is a leading killer of African American males. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports the predominance of AIDS is six times higher in African Americans and three times higher among Hispanics than among whites. "Among reported cases, 1994 was the first year when blacks and Hispanics together accounted for the majority of all cases reported among men." Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that in 1990, European Americans accounted for about 52 percent of AIDS patients while African Americans made up 30 percent and Hispanics about 17 percent. By 1994, the proportion of African American and European American cases had become nearly equal. Infection rates are also gr
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1563
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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