The Basics

Human Infects men, women, and children regardless of race or age.
Immunodeficiency Destroys the human body’s natural ability to fight infections.
Virus Small, infectious agent that reproduces within a person.

HIV is the virus that gradually damages the body’s immune system and eventually causes AIDS. The human body is equipped with CD4 cells, also called helper T cells, which defend the body against viruses and bacteria. HIV damages the immune system by attacking and entering these cells. Once inside the cells, the viruses reproduce and then move on to attack other helper T cells and repeat the process. As more helper T cells are overtaken, the body becomes less and less able to fight off illnesses.

A person can be infected with the virus for three to five years—and sometimes as many as 10 years—without knowing it or feeling sick. Despite the appearance of good health, the person is able to spread the virus and, without treatment, will ultimately develop AIDS.

What Is AIDS?

Acquired - A condition one is not born with.
Immune Deficiency - An immune system that cannot fight off infections.
Syndrome - Signs and symptoms that occur together and characterize a particular illness.

When one’s immune system is so damaged that it cannot fight “opportunistic” infections—infections healthy immune systems can fight off but weakened ones can’t—he is said to have AIDS. Because the body is not able to fight off these diseases, the person will eventually die. The most common opportunistic infections include tuberculosis, pneumonia, skin cancer, meningitis, thrush, herpes, and bacterial infections that cause fevers, digestive difficulties, and weight loss. AIDS manifests itself differently in every individual. Some people die very soon after becoming infected, while others may live for a decade or more without treatment.

How Are HIV and AIDS Transmitted?
Bodily Fluids: HIV is transmitted when a person has contact with certain bodily fluids of another person who is HIV-positive. (A person who carries HIV is classified as “HIV-positive.”)
Bodily fluids that can contain and transmit HIV include:

• Blood
• Wound discharge or pus
• Semen
• Vaginal fluid
• Breast milk
• Bodily fluids that can contain and transmit HIV which medical staff may contact, include:
• Fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord
• Fluid surrounding bone joints
• Fluid surrounding an unborn baby

• Sexual Activity--Sexual activity is the most common form of HIV transmission. HIV can be transmitted through any kind of sexual activity (vaginal, anal, and oral) and can occur when bodily fluids of an HIV-positive partner enter into the other partner, including through small, even unidentifiable, cuts or scratches. Women, and especially girls, are twice as vulnerable as men to contracting HIV through sexual activity due to their biological and physiological characteristics. This vulnerability rises substantially in cases of coercive and/or violent sexual intercourse.
• Sexually Transmitted Infections--The risk of transmission is further increased if either partner has a sexually transmitted infection (STI). An STI is any disease that is passed from one person to another through sexual contact, such as chlamydia, genital herpes, genital warts, gonorrhea, and syphilis. HIV is also an STI.

• Blood Transfusions--An individual can become infected if she is given HIV-infected blood during a blood transfusion. Most countries now test donated blood for HIV, lowering the risk. However, in situations where such screening is not done the risk is much higher.
• Sharing Needles or Using Syringes and Razor Blades--Needles, syringes, razor blades, and other instruments that pierce the skin (for drug injection, tattooing, piercing, carving scars, circumcision, or shaving) can transmit the virus if they were first used by an infected person. One can even contract HIV in a health care setting if syringes, needles, and equipment are not properly sterilized.
• Mother-to-Child Transmission--An HIV-infected woman can pass the virus to her baby during pregnancy through the placenta, and during childbirth through exposure to the mother’s blood. Without treatment, approximately 15 to 30 percent of babies born to HIV-positive mothers are infected with the virus. HIV can also be transmitted to a breastfeeding baby through the mother’s milk. Breastfeeding by an HIV-positive mother increases the risk of transmission to her baby by 10 to 20 percent. Antiretroviral preven­tative treatment is an effective method of preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV. When combined with the use of safer infant-feeding methods, it can halve the risk of infant infection.

• HIV is not acquired through the following:
• Living in the same place with people who have HIV/AIDS
• Kissing (unless there are open sores or exposure to blood within the mouth)
• Touch (hugging, hand-shaking, or sports contact)
• Bites from mosquitoes or other insects
• Shared food, utensils, cups, or dishes
• Shared swimming pools or bathing facilities
• Sneezes or coughs
• Hospital visits
• Sweat, saliva, or tears*
• Urine or feces*