Research shows, that the origins of HIV go all of the way
back to the late nineteenth or early twentieth century in west-central Africa. AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) and HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), weakens the immune system, making people who have it more
susceptible to other illnesses and infections. HIV/AIDS was first identified
and recognized in the early 1980's. HIV/AIDS can be transmitted through
unprotected sex, blood transfusions, sharing of needles, through a
mother and her baby during pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding. Without
treatment, HIV advances in stages, and can get worse over time. There are three
stages of HIV which include the following: acute HIV infection, clinical
latency, and then developing into AIDS (2015).
When AIDS was first really talked about in the 1980’s, there
was a stereotype that came along with it. The first few patients that were
diagnosed with it were gay men, and cases were found in Los Angeles, New York
City, and San Francisco. On June 5, 1981, five young and previously healthy gay
men were diagnosed with PCP (Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia), which is a very
rare lung disease. There were also other indications that their immune systems
were not working properly. During that same time, there were a few cases of
Kaposi’s Sarcoma (KS), a rare and aggressive cancer, reported in gay, young,
previously healthy males. By July 3rd, there were 26 cases of PCP and KS and
the label “gay cancer” started to show up in society (2016). It took way too long for people to realize that anyone could get HIV/AIDS, and that there needed to be more done to try to prevent it when it first became a problem.
The term AIDS was first used in 1982 and the definition was
“a disease at least moderately predictive of a defect in cell-mediated
immunity, occurring in a person with no known case for diminished resistance to
that disease.” It wasn’t until 1985, that the FDA (US) approved the first HIV
antibody test. Blood products then began to be tested in the US and in Japan.
Along with that, the first International Conference on AIDS was held in Atlanta
GA, and President Ronald Reagan mentioned the word "AIDS" in public
for the first time while answering questions from reporters. By the end of
1985, 6,584 people of all different ages, races, sexualities and health statuses had
died due to AIDS (1999).
HIV/AIDS is still a big deal in society today. There is no
cure, so people have to be really careful not to contract this disease. The best ways to
prevent yourself from contracting HIV/AIDS is by steering clear from any
situation that allows HIV/AIDS-infected fluids like, blood, semen, vaginal
secretions and breast milk, into your body. My next post will talk about real
life people who have had to deal with this disease in their lives and how it has impacted them, as well as those around them.
References
(1999). The AIDS Epidemic: 1981-1987. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://partners.nytimes.com/library/national/science/aids/timeline80-87.html
(2016). A timeline of
HIV/AIDS. Aids.gov. Retrieved from https://www.aids.gov/hiv-aids-basics/hiv-aids-101/aids-timeline/
(8/27/2015). Stages of HIV infection. Aids.gov. Retrieved
from https://www.aids.gov/hiv-aids-basics/just-diagnosed-with-hiv-aids/hiv-in-your-body/stages-of-hiv/
