Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, Or AIDS, Is A Recently Recognized Disease

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Term Paper Title	Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, Or AIDS, Is A Recently Recognized Disease
# of Words	2840
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	11.36

AIDS

AIDS

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome, or AIDS, is a recently recognized disease
entity.  It is caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV),
which attacks selected cells in the immune system (see IMMUNITY) and produces
defects in function.  These defects may not be apparent for years. They lead in
a relentless fashion, however, to a severe suppression of the immune system's
ability to resist harmful organisms.  This leaves the body open to an invasion
by various infections, which are therefore called opportunistic diseases, and to
the development of unusual cancers.  The virus also tends to reach certain brain
cells.  This leads to so-called neuropsychiatric abnormalities, or psychological
disturbances caused by physical damage to nerve cells. Since the first AIDS
cases were reported in 1981, through mid-1992, more than 190,000 AIDS cases and
more than 152,000 deaths had been reported in the United States alone.  This is
only the tip of the iceberg of HIV infection, however.  It is estimated that
between 1 million and 1.5 million Americans had been infected with the virus by
the early 1990s but had not yet developed clinical symptoms.  In addition,
although the vast majority of documented cases have occurred in the United
States, AIDS cases have been reported in about 162 countries worldwide.  Sub-
Saharan Africa in particular appears to suffer a heavy burden of this illness.
No cure or vaccine now exists for AIDS.  Many of those infected with HIV may not
even be aware that they carry and can spread the virus.  It is evident that HIV
infection represents an epidemic of serious proportions.  Combating it is a
major challenge to biomedical scientists and health-care providers. HIV
infection and AIDS represent one of the most pressing public policy and public
health problems worldwide.

Definition of AIDS

The U. S. CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL has established criteria for defining
cases of AIDS that are based on laboratory evidence, the presence of certain
opportunistic diseases, and a range of other conditions.  The opportunistic
diseases are generally the most prominent and life-threatening clinical
manifestations of AIDS.  It is now recognized, however, that neuropsychiatric
manifestations of HIV infection of the brain are also common.  Other
complications of HIV infection include fever, diarrhea, severe weight loss, and
swollen lymph nodes (see LYMPHATIC SYSTEM). When HIV-infected persons experience
some of the above symptom...

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