Topic > Understanding the Human Immunodeficiency Virus Epidemic

The human immunodeficiency virus, known simply as HIV, is a virus that infects cells of the immune system that defend against viruses and converts them into viruses and reproduces them viral cells. With fewer immune system cells it becomes more difficult to stay healthy. The virus is spread through the transfer of body fluids from a person with HIV, including blood, semen, breast milk, and other body fluids. The main ways to promote the spread of HIV are sexual intercourse and sharing used needles or pharmaceutical equipment. HIV quickly became an epidemic not only in the United States but throughout the world starting in 1981 with the first case detected. In 1983 the epidemic had shown its destructive force according to data from UC San Francisco (2011), there were up to 3,000 AIDS infections, caused by HIV, and 1,000 deaths. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The first man to be cured of HIV was Timothy Ray Brown, a patient who contracted HIV who was diagnosed with leukemia and required a bone marrow transplant with this transplant his HIV was cured. That's because, coincidentally, Brown's match had a mutation in the same cells affected by the virus. Although this was unable to replicate due to the extreme rarity of finding a bone marrow that has the same mutation, Brown appears to have recovered from HIV and has been living on antiretroviral therapy ever since. This problem exists today because there is no effective cure for HIV, however, antiretroviral therapy (ART) can slow the progression of the disease. Another problem is that today 1.1 million people in the United States are living with HIV, however, 1 in 7 are unaware of it. have it. This happens all over the world without borders and the source of HIV is identified in a West African chimpanzee and in 1959 the first man with the disease was from Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, today the concentration is in East Africa and southern at 53%. The risks for the community in the future are trying to maintain surveillance on the needs of HIV victims, on new infections, trying to prevent further infections and treatments. Another risk to communities in the future is due to the virus's ability to mutate and become resistant to new HIV treatments being developed. The communities most at risk and most affected in the United States are gay, bisexual men or transgender women who have sex with men. Human immunodeficiency virus deaths have been decreasing since 1996 in the United States and Europe, which may be attributed to the use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). This, however, is only a treatment option and not a cure. Since there is no cure for HIV, to solve the problem we look at prevention measures, including these two procedures. The first is a public health behavioral intervention program that provides information such as awareness about disease transmission. This includes preventing testing for the disease and making sure your partner is, practicing safe sex, using sterile needles, and limiting sexual partners. The second prevention measure is a medicine called Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PeEP) which is a pill that must be taken every day and is used for those who do not have HIV but are at high risk of contracting the virus. The most effective way to avoid contracting HIV is to make sure all your partners are tested for HIV because the main cause of transmission is through sexual intercourse. Not only this, but also increase national programs.