Summer BanksAIDS(Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome)
July 13th 2006 01:43
AIDS(Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) :
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome is one of the worst pandemics the world has ever known. HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), the virus that causes AIDS, was first discovered in 1981 in a remote area of central Africa. It has since swept across the globe, infecting millions in a relatively short period of time. AIDS has killed more than 28 million people that we know of, with up to 3.6 million people dying in 2005 alone While many cases go unreported, the prevalence of the disease is increasing. By comparison:
The flu pandemic of 1918 killed approximately 20 million people worldwide.
World War II killed approximately 40 million people.
Clearly the AIDS pandemic has had, and will continue to have, a significant and global impact.
[/COLOR]The thought of contracting HIV is frightening. And there is good reason for that fear -- the disease is presently incurable, it has a high mortality rate, it spreads quickly and there is no vaccine to protect against it. In today's world, that combination is rare. For example, small pox is often fatal, but the disease has been completely contained through vaccinations. Tuberculosis is often fatal but can usually be cured with antibiotics if caught early.
AIDS has been able to infect and kill so many people because of its unique makeup. Let's look at some of the features that make this disease so unusual.
HIV spreads by intimate contact with an infected person. Forms of intimate contact that can transmit AIDS include sexual activity and any sort of situation that allows blood from one person to enter another. Especially when you compare it with the many viruses that spread through the air, it would seem like the intimacy involved in the transmission of AIDS would be a limiting factor.
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome is one of the worst pandemics the world has ever known. HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), the virus that causes AIDS, was first discovered in 1981 in a remote area of central Africa. It has since swept across the globe, infecting millions in a relatively short period of time. AIDS has killed more than 28 million people that we know of, with up to 3.6 million people dying in 2005 alone While many cases go unreported, the prevalence of the disease is increasing. By comparison:
The flu pandemic of 1918 killed approximately 20 million people worldwide.
Clearly the AIDS pandemic has had, and will continue to have, a significant and global impact.
[/COLOR]The thought of contracting HIV is frightening. And there is good reason for that fear -- the disease is presently incurable, it has a high mortality rate, it spreads quickly and there is no vaccine to protect against it. In today's world, that combination is rare. For example, small pox is often fatal, but the disease has been completely contained through vaccinations. Tuberculosis is often fatal but can usually be cured with antibiotics if caught early.
AIDS has been able to infect and kill so many people because of its unique makeup. Let's look at some of the features that make this disease so unusual.
HIV spreads by intimate contact with an infected person. Forms of intimate contact that can transmit AIDS include sexual activity and any sort of situation that allows blood from one person to enter another. Especially when you compare it with the many viruses that spread through the air, it would seem like the intimacy involved in the transmission of AIDS would be a limiting factor.
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