What Is HIV/AIDS? AIDS is a chronic, life-threatening condition caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). By damaging or destroying the cells of your immune system, HIV interferes with your body's ability to effectively fight off viruses, bacteria and fungi that cause disease. This makes you more susceptible to opportunistic infections your body would normally resist, such as pneumonia and meningitis, and to certain types of cancers. The virus and the infection itself are known as HIV. The term AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is used to mean the latter stages of HIV infection. But both the terms HIV and AIDS refer to the same disease. HIV is most commonly spread by sexual contact with an infected partner. It can also spread through infected blood and shared needles or syringes contaminated with the virus. Untreated women with HIV also can pass the infection to their babies during pregnancy, delivery or through their breast milk. Sadly, almost everyone in the human community has been or will be touched in some way by HIV/AIDS. In the nearly two decades since the first reports of the disease, AIDS has become a global epidemic. Worldwide, more than 36 million adults and children are now living with HIV. Since the epidemic began, 21.8 million people have died of AIDS, 4.3 million of them children. According to recent estimates by the United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization (WHO), 5.3 million people were newly infected with HIV in 2000 alone and AIDS-related deaths reached a record 3 million. Of those who died, 500,000 were children. The impact of the AIDS epidemic is greatest in sub-Saharan Africa where AIDS has become a crisis with enormous social and economic consequences. But the largest increase in HIV/AIDS has been in the Russian Federation. In the year 2000, more new HIV infections were recorded there than in all previous years of the epidemic combined. In developed countries, such as the United States, the news is less grim. Yet the epidemic is far from over. Currently, an estimated 900,000 Americans are living with HIV/AIDS. That is partly the result of improved treatments. Since 1995 the number of medications available to treat AIDS has more than tripled. Powerful combinations of newer antiretroviral drugs have helped reduce serious complications of the disease and prolong life. But the positive news about treatment means that there is also a growing complacency about AIDS. And unfortunately, high risk behavior already seems to be increasing in some communities.Headline Watch: 36.1 million people living with AIDS UNAIDS and WHO Report on the Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic Aegis HIV/AIDS Web site (AIDS information updated hourly) The symptoms of HIV and AIDS vary, depending on the phase of infection. When first infected with HIV, you may have no symptoms at all. It's often more common to develop a brief flulike illness 2 to 6 weeks after being infected. But because the symptoms of an initial infection — which may include fever, headache, sore throat, swollen lymph glands and rash — are similar to those of other diseases, you might not realize you've been infected with HIV. Even if you don't have symptoms, you're still able to transmit the virus to others. Once the virus enters your body, your own immune system also comes under attack. The virus multiplies in your lymph nodes and slowly begins to destroy your helper T cells (CD4 lymphocytes) — the white blood cells that coordinate your entire immune system. You may remain symptom free for 8 or 9 years. But the virus continues to multiply and destroy immune cells. Tests are likely to show a sharp decline in the number of these cells in your blood. Eventually, you may develop mild infections or chronic symptoms such as: Swollen lymph nodes (often one of the first signs of HIV infection) Diarrhea,Weight loss,Fever,Cough and shortness of breath. During the last phase of HIV — which occurs approximately 10 to 11 years after the initial infection — more serious symptoms may begin to appear, and the infection may then meet the official definition of AIDS. In 1993 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) redefined AIDS to mean the presence of HIV infection (as shown by a positive HIV-antibody test) plus at least one of the following: The development of an opportunistic infection (an infection that occurs when your immune system is impaired) such as Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) A CD4 lymphocyte count of 200 or less (a normal count ranges from 600 to 1000) By the time AIDS develops, your immune system has been severely damaged, making you susceptible to opportunistic infections. The symptoms of some of these infections may include:Soaking night sweats,Shaking chills or fever higher than 100 F for several weeks,Dry cough and shortness of breath,Chronic diarrhea Persistent white spots or unusual lesions on your tongue or in your mouth Headaches,Blurred and distorted vision,Weight loss, You may also begin to experience symptoms of later-stage HIV infection itself, such as: Persistent, unexplained fatigue,Soaking night sweats,Shaking chills or fever higher than 100 F for several weeks,Swelling of lymph nodes for more than 3 months,Chronic diarrhea,Persistent headaches People with HIV infection are also at greater risk of developing certain cancers, especially Kaposi's sarcoma, cervical cancer and lymphoma. 800-230-PLAN (800-342-AIDS)