Please note, HIV is not transmitted through the air. Read more!

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus)


HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is a virus that damages the immune system by infecting and destroying CD4 cells. If more and more CD4 cells are destroyed, the body's immune system will be weakened so that it is vulnerable to various diseases. HIV that is not treated immediately will develop into a serious condition called AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). AIDS is the final stage of HIV infection. At this stage, the body's ability to fight infection is completely lost. HIV transmission occurs through contact with body fluids of sufferers, such as blood, sperm, vaginal fluids, anal fluids, and breast milk. Please note, HIV is not transmitted through air, water, sweat, tears, saliva, mosquito bites, or physical touch.

HIV is a lifelong disease. In other words, the HIV virus will stay in the patient's body for the rest of his life. although there is no treatment method to treat HIV, but there are drugs that can slow the progression of this disease and can increase the life expectancy of sufferers. Based on data from the Indonesian Ministry of Health in 2019, there were more than 50,000 cases of HIV infection in Indonesia. Of these, the most common HIV cases were heterosexuals, followed by male sex men (MSM) or homosexuals, injecting drug users (IDUs), and sex workers.

Meanwhile, the number of AIDS sufferers in Indonesia tends to increase. In 2019, there were more than 7,000 AIDS sufferers with more than 600 deaths.

However, from 2005 to 2019, the death rate from AIDS in Indonesia continued to decline. This indicates that treatment in Indonesia has succeeded in reducing the number of deaths from AIDS.

Symptoms experienced by people with HIV are mostly mild flu in 2-6 weeks after being infected with HIV. The flu can be accompanied by other symptoms and can last for 1-2 weeks. After the flu improves, other symptoms may not be visible for years even though the HIV virus continues to damage the sufferer's immune system, until HIV progresses to an advanced stage of AIDS. In most cases, a person only finds out that he has HIV after seeing a doctor due to a serious illness caused by a weakened immune system. Serious illnesses include chronic diarrhea, pneumonia, or brain toxoplasmosis.

HIV disease is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus or HIV, according to the name of the disease. If left untreated, HIV can get worse and progress to AIDS. HIV transmission can occur through vaginal or anal sex, use of needles, and blood transfusions. Although rare, HIV can also be passed from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding.

Some of the factors that can increase the risk of transmission are as follows:

Having sex with multiple partners and without using safety, sharing needles, doing work that involves contact with human body fluids without using adequate personal protective equipment. Consult a doctor if you suspect that you have been exposed to HIV through the methods above, especially if you experience flu symptoms within 2-6 weeks afterward.

Patients who have been diagnosed with HIV should immediately receive treatment in the form of antiretroviral therapy (ARV). ARVs work to prevent the HIV virus from multiplying so it doesn't attack the immune system. Here are some ways that can be done to avoid and minimize HIV transmission, not having sex before marriage, not changing sexual partners, using condoms during sexual intercourse, avoiding drug use, especially injection types, getting correct information related to HIV, how to transmission, prevention, and treatment, especially for adolescents

Created by: dr. Ulky Nur Mulkia Prio

Reviewed by : dr. Adam Iskandar, Sp.PD

Reference:
World Health Organization (2021). Fact Sheets. HIV/AIDS.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2020). HIV Basics. About HIV.
Indonesian Ministry of Health (2020). InfoDATIN. HIV and AIDS 2020.
Indonesian Ministry of Health. Directorate General of Disease Prevention and Control (2019). Report on the Progress of HIV-AIDS & Sexually Transmitted Infectious Diseases (STIs) Quarter 4 of 2019.
National Health Services UK (2021). Health A to Z. HIV and AIDS.
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (2020). HIV Basics. What Are HIV and AIDS?
Mayo Clinic (2020). Diseases & Conditions. HIV/AIDS.
Ellis, R.R. WebMD (2020). Types and Strains of HIV.
Pietrangelo, Ann. Healthline (2021). A Comprehensive Guide to HIV and AIDS.