AIDS -- ACQUIRED IMMUNE DEFICIENCY SYNDROME

The Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome or in short AIDS is in most case fatal. So far there had been no cure when the body’s immune system breaks down.

AIDS was first identified in the United States in 1981. However, cases are on record since 1940.

In 1983 the cause of Aids was discovered s a result of infection by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus = HIV is transmitted. The body fluids of an infected person enter another person’s bloodstream. The virus then attacks cells of the immune system. It has been known that people carry the HIV positive virus for ten years or even more without developing AIDS

.

Infected people mostly die of infections which normally are not attacking people with healthy immune systems such are rare pneumonia or skin cancer.

It is thought that HIV comes from a virus found in group of African monkeys as far back as 140 years ago. However, AIDS was not diagnosed till recently because it was always diagnosed as syphilis and tuberculosis.

When the diseases came under controlled during the mid 20^th century it was realised that AIDS was a separate condition.

People who are most at risks are homosexual, bisexual men, drug users who inject with shared needles, surgical patients and haemophiliacs treated with contaminated blood.

The increase in tourism is also a great breeding ground for AIDS.  Another area where AIDS is likely spreading is drugs used for recreation and the easily availability of heroin which encourage the use of plastic syringes has brought about a populations of injecting drugs users most in large cities.

The increase of prostitution in cities and trade routes between African countries turned into an epidemic of AIDS in the early 1980s. In some areas were 20 per cent of the Adult population infected.  Mass immunisation programme started but without rigorous sterilisation of needles increased the disease even further

By 1995 a total of 1.2 million cases of AIDS were reported to the World Health Organisation. An estimate of 4.5 million cases worldwide is suffering from AIDS now since the epidemic began.

2014 -- A report shows that in the Western World AIDS is contained or even slightly reduced but at the moment Russia it is on the increase.

 

President Putin does not seem to be willing to spend any money to get AIDS under control.