Family and Community Health Nursing II (3 units Activity A

Family and Community Health Nursing II (3 units Activity A

HIV/ AIDS

Abstract

There exist deadly diseases which continue to pollute the citizens of the United States. It is essential because each citizen must be enlightened of the circumstances to channel it and at this present time there is absolutely no solution to the problem (Aggleton et al., 2011). The epidemic I am conveying of is AIDS. AIDS does not at all show prejudice in addition to all to everyone is exposed to the disease. The following paper highlight the disease AIDS and HIV.

Introduction

The first thing important to understand is that HIV and AIDS are not the same. HIV is a retrovirus which causes the development of AIDS. By infecting the bodies T4 helper cells the virus messes up their immune system that leaves the person that is infected helpless from other infections and tumors. If that person has a count of their T4 and it is below 200 and has received a diagnosis of one of the 23 indicator diseases their status changes from HIV positive for AIDS. With this critically low T4 count the body is unable to defend itself and without the proper medications the individual can easily contract an infection which can lead to death (Channing Bete Company, 2008).

HIV

H - Stands for 'Human' as this virus only infects human beings.

I - Stands for 'Immune-deficiency' as this virus creates a deficiency within the immune system of a human body which causes a failure on the part of the immune system to work properly and fight diseases.

V - Stands for 'Virus' as this organism is a virus, which means it is capable to reproduce itself (a characteristic of a virus). Reproduction takes place by taking over the machinery of the human cell.

AIDS

A - Stands for 'Acquired'. It's a condition/disease one acquires and gets infected with; it's not something which is transmitted to humans through genes.

I - Stands for 'Immune' as it directly affects the immune system of a human body. The immune system works to fight off and kills germs such as virus and bacteria.

D - Stands for 'Deficiency' as it weakens the immune system to the level that it stops to work and functions properly in a human body.

S - Stands for 'Syndrome' which causes the human body to experience a wide range of diseases and opportunistic infections.

If a person is diagnosed with HIV positive, it means he/she is infected with a virus that can develop itself into AIDS. HIV is not curable which means if a person becomes HIV positive, he/she will remain HIV positive for the rest of hi/her life. Over a period of time, white blood cells, also called “T cells” and “CD4 lymphocytes”, are infected and eventually killed by HIV which makes the body unable to fight off certain kinds of cancers and infections (El-Sadr, 2010). The world has become an unsafe place as health related issues in humans is rising with an immense ...