What Is HIV?
What Is HIV?
To
understand what HIV is, let’s break it down:
H – Human – This
particular virus can only infect human beings.
I – Immunodeficiency
– HIV weakens your immune system by destroying important cells that
fight disease and infection. A "deficient" immune system can't
protect you.
V – Virus – A virus
can only reproduce itself by taking over a cell in the body of its host.
Human
Immunodeficiency Virus is a lot like other viruses,
including those that cause the "flu"
or the common cold. But there is an important difference – over time, your immune
system can clear most viruses out of your body. That isn't the case
with HIV – the human immune system can't seem to get rid of it. Scientists are
still trying to figure out why.
We know
that HIV can hide for long periods of time in the cells of your body and that
it attacks a key part of your immune system – your T-cells or CD4
cells. Your body has to have these cells to fight infections and
disease, but HIV invades them, uses them to make more copies of itself, and
then destroys them.
Over
time, HIV can destroy so many of your CD4 cells that your body can't fight
infections and diseases anymore. When that happens, HIV infection can lead to
AIDS.
What Is AIDS?
To
understand what AIDS is, let’s break it down:
A – Acquired – AIDS
is not something you inherit from your parents. You acquire AIDS after birth.
I – Immuno – Your
body's immune system includes all the organs and cells that work to fight off
infection or disease.
D – Deficiency –
You get AIDS when your immune system is "deficient," or isn't working
the way it should.
S – Syndrome – A
syndrome is a collection of symptoms and signs of disease. AIDS is a syndrome,
rather than a single disease, because it is a complex illness with a wide
range of complications and symptoms.
Acquired
Immunodeficiency Syndrome is the final stage of
HIV infection. People at this stage of HIV disease have badly damaged immune
systems, which put them at risk for opportunistic infections (OIs).
You
will be diagnosed with AIDS if you have one or
more specific OIs, certain
cancers, or a very low number of CD4
cells. If you have AIDS, you will need medical
intervention and treatment to prevent death.
For more information, see CDC’s Basic Information About
HIV And AIDS
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