HIV/AIDS

Running Head: HIV/AIDS Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) /Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Name Course University Lecturer Date Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was first discovered in 1981.It is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) which was discovered in 1983.It took almost 18 months for people infected by the virus to be diagnosed. According to the New Mexico AIDS infonet, this disease was first discovered in the US among men who were gay and was given the name Gay-Related immune deficiency. An analysis of blood done later in 1959 in Belgian Congo of a Bantu man, who died of unknown illness, showed that the man was HIV positive. This became the first confirmed case in Africa. Therefore scientist concluded that AIDS is a global epidemic. According to Wain Hobson this disease originated from Africa. Studies were then conducted on growth of HIV infected people and in June 1982 many of them died of a deadly pneumonia according to center for disease control and prevention. Later in 1982 more cases were reported from different countries from a report on AIDS contracted through blood transfusion and from infants born to mothers with AIDS to the centre for disease control in 1982.The HIV virus causing AIDS was discovered by Dr. Luc Montagnier in France after isolation of the lymphadenopathy-associated virus in 1983.This virus was discovered as the cause of AIDS. (UNAIDS 2008) “By 1983, 33 countries reported cases of AIDS” (UNAIDS 2008). In addition many well known personalities were reported to have died of AIDS, for example Rock Hudson a renown film star died of aids in 1985 after declaring himself HIV positive. Many of these people reported were from the entertainment industry. From then AIDS disease became no respecter of persons, killing both the young and the old, rich and the poor. This moved the president of the United States of America to declare it publicly in an international conference in 1986.He called on the health sector to direct its efforts on preventing, informing and reducing the risks related to transmission of the AIDS virus to more uninfected persons. Health scientist started working on the causes, ways of transmission, prevention and treatment of AIDS. Several campaigns have been initiated from then up to now addressing this global epidemic. More funds are now being directed towards development of cocktail anti retroviral which have proved more effective than single anti-retroviral. (UNAIDS 2008) Currently it is projected that approximately 33.4 million people are living with HIV/AIDS across the world. “Approximately 50% of the infected people are women globally. Youths account for almost 40% of all the new adult HIV infections. Sub Saharan Africa is leading with 67% of all people living with HIV worldwide” (UNAIDS 2008). Alarmingly the number of new infections outnumbers by a great margin those in treatment; there are around five new infections for every two people starting treatment according to UNAIDS 2009 report on the global AIDS Epidemic. So AIDS should be spoken of boldly and plainly to make it real among all the groups. AIDS and HIV are different entities; Human immunodeficiency virus is a pathogenic micro-organism of the class of viruses wh...