Can HIV or AIDS be treated?
Once you are infected with HIV you are infected for life.
Over the first years of infection the virus will reproduce
and begin to attack the body’s immune system. But you
may not notice this. Eventually the immune system will
be so damaged that it is unable to fight off infections,
including many that would not normally be a problem.
These are called “Opportunistic Infections” or OIs.
Many of these illnesses are very serious, and they need
to be treated; some can be prevented. Someone whose
immune system has been weakened by HIV and falls ill
with an OI is said to have AIDS (if you have one of these
infections but you are not HIV+ you do NOT have AIDS).
Each new infection will weaken the person living with
AIDS (PLHA or PWA) and eventually they will die.
Some of the most serious OIs are:
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Toxoplasmosis – which affects the brain
Cytomegalovirus – affects the eyes and the gut
Candidiasis – affects mouth, throat and vagina
Pneumonia (PCP) and Tuberculosis (TB) – affect
the lungs
If you know you are HIV+ you can take precautions
against some infections, one of several advantages of
knowing your HIV status.
and the immune system will be under attack once more.
This time the HIV may be immune to the drugs that were
used against it.
Some people stop taking the drugs because they make
them feel sick: they should tell their doctor about any
side effects or reactions they have to the drugs as these
can usually be controlled or the drug combination might
be changed to avoid them. In the long term (after several
years) ARVs may cause other health problems, but they
remain the only proven way to reduce HIV levels in the body.
So it is important to take the combination of drugs that is
prescribed regularly, as instructed: taking them just once
or for a short time will not work, nor will taking just some
of them so don’t consider sharing or selling any of your pills.
Once you start ARV therapy it must continue – and the
result should be many extra years free from serious illness.
But we still have no cure for HIV: preventing HIV infection
is the best way to avoid AIDS
For more information:
www.aegis.com
www.aidsmap.com
www.thebody.com
Contact Numbers:
Living with HIV
People who are HIV+ can help their immune systems in
the same ways that uninfected people can: get plenty of
sleep, avoid stress and eat a healthy diet. All of these
can be difficult if you have been given an HIV diagnosis, if
you suffer discrimination and it becomes a struggle to
look after yourself. We should all think about how we
can help people living with HIV and AIDS to live longer,
better lives.
Treatment for HIV infection – ARVs
It is possible to treat HIV infection and bring it under
control using triple combinations of drugs called AntiRetrovirals or ARVs (this is sometimes called highly active
Anti-Retroviral therapy – ART, or HAART). If successful
this treatment will reduce the amount of HIV in the body
and allow the immune system to recover. This happens
within a few months. But if ARV treatment then stops or
is interrupted for a period, the levels of HIV will rise again
Published in London, September 2004
National AIDS Trust
196 Old Street
London EC1V 9FR
United Kingdom
Positive Action at work is funded by Positive Action, GSK’s programme of support for communities affected by AIDS
HIV and AIDS:
the facts
What are HIV and AIDS?
HIV is the virus that leads to AIDS.
HIV stands for the Human
Immunodeficiency Virus. A virus
is small enough to infect human
cells – this virus (HIV is a “retrovirus”)
attacks the cells that defend us
against diseases.
AIDS is short for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.
It is the name for the illnesses people can get once they
have been infected with HIV.
How do you know if you are
infected with HIV?
It is hard to know, because someone with HIV probably
won’t feel ill or notice any effects for many years. You
cannot tell if someone is infected simply by looking at
them. If you want to know if you are infected or not, you
need to take an HIV test. This test – of your saliva or
blood – checks for antibodies to HIV.
After infection it takes several weeks for the body to produce
enough antibodies to show up on the test – that is why
you need two “negative” (no HIV antibodies) tests, two or
three months apart, to be certain you are not infected with
HIV. If antibodies are found the result is said to be “positive”
and the person has become “HIV positive” or HIV+.
HIV tests are available at
VCT centres – VCT stands
for Voluntary Counselling
and Testing. You should be
counselled before and after
an HIV test – the result could
change your life. If you get
a negative result you need
to think about how to avoid
the risks of becoming
infected in the future.
If the result is positive you
will need to access support
and advice so you can stay
healthy and access
treatment if you get ill.
How do people become
infected with HIV?
HIV is only found in certain human body fluids. HIV cannot
live for long outside the human body. When someone is
living with HIV there is enough virus present in some of
their body fluids to infect others, but only if those fluids
get into the other person’s blood stream. HIV can only
be transmitted in the following ways, so there is no reason
to ostracise or discriminate against people living with HIV
or AIDS or to fear them – we can live with together, work
together and care for each other in safety.
Sex
There is HIV in semen and in vaginal fluids. So sexual
intercourse, where the penis enters the vagina or the anus,
carries a high risk if one of the partners is HIV+.
This risk can be avoided by:
n not having sexual intercourse
n only having sexual intercourse in a monogamous
and faithful relationship where both partners have had
negative HIV tests
n always using a condom when you have
sexual intercourse
If you already have another
sexually transmitted
infection (STI) the risk
of contracting HIV
through intercourse or
oral sex is much higher.
Have a check up and
get any STIs treated.
Infected blood
Blood that contains HIV can only
get into your bloodstream in certain
ways: an injection with a needle
already used on someone else
(whether for tattooing, illegal drugs
or in a clinic); a blood transfusion
with contaminated blood; an
accidental injury with a used
hypodermic needle.
There is a very small risk to you if infected blood splashes
in your eyes or onto an open wound. For this reason
people caring for someone who is HIV+ are advised to
cover any open wounds of their own with waterproof
plasters first. Dentists and surgeons who use sharp
instruments are advised to sterilise them between patients.
Mother to child
The unborn baby of an expectant
HIV + mother has a chance of
being born HIV+ themselves.
That chance can be reduced by:
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Treating the mother with an
antiretroviral drug before and
during the birth
Limiting the baby’s exposure
to the mother’s blood during
the birth
Bottle-feeding with infant formula
as breast milk can contain HIV
HIV is NOT transmitted by any of these:
kisses
first aid working together
sharing bathrooms eating together being a friend
swimming cuddles sharing a glass
insects toilets animals