Homework Help: Health: Diseases & Disorders: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

AIDS was first discovered in the United States in the 1980’s. It was believed that only homosexual men were able to acquire AIDS or the so called “GAY CANCER” as said in the video. AIDS is a sexually transmitted disease that both female and male are able to acquire and can also be transmitted by needles, contaminated blood products, and a mom can give the disease to her new baby.

The immune system fights back the virus in three ways, with custom made antibodies, macrophages which eat up foreign invaders, and killer T-cells which seek and destroy cells that have already been infected. This defense is coordinated by helper T cells, but HIV has a clever battle strategy, it attacks the T cells, impairing the function of the body's defenses. HIV has a special shape on its surface that fits perfectly into a shape on the T cell this shape is a protein called CD4, this is how the virus enters and infects the cell. The virus hides and after a while comes out of the cell to reproduce. The new viruses then develop from the cell and each new virus may go on to infect and destroy other T cells, weakening the immune system's defense. When a lot of T cells are destroyed HIV turns into AIDS. The immune system is weakened and can no longer defend itself, a person may die from any other disease their immune system can fight back.

The new treatment options for aids are taking combinations of antiviral drugs the latest one is Viread which blocks HIV replication. Trizivir is another option for the treatment of HIV in adults and adolescents Trizivir combines a single dose of three drugs into one pill. New treatment for HIV have helped many HIV infected people live for a longer period. However three long term side effects that can develop in HIV infected people who take combinations of antiviral drugs are heart disease, diabetes, and blood pressure. Prevention for aids is not easy and sometimes it is not in a persons ability because the disease can be passed through infected needles and contaminated blood products that a doctor may use on a patient on a careless attempt. But there is one way that everyone can help in the prevention and spread of the deadly disease which is sex abstinence before marriage. In many cases ignorant people discriminate against HIV or AIDS infected people, as if the disease was in the air they don‘t know the true ways the disease can be transmitted.

Aids is a devastating disease that can be treated but not cured. The deadly disease can be acquired by both females and males. The new treatments can help a person with aids live longer but can not cure the person. As this disease continues to take the lives of many there is hope for the future to invent a cure for the devastating disease and also to educate many people about aids to prevent the wide spread of the disease.

Bibliography

1. In class HBO video
2. HIV: The "AIDS Virus" Life Cycle Of The Virus by Peter Schweizer and Amanda Hollingsworth. http://www.aegis.com/topics/virus/
3. Introduction to HIV and AIDS treatment. http://www.avert.org/introtrt.htm
4. Class notes and handouts

Homework Help: Health: Diseases & Disorders

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