What is HIV/AIDS?

It is a chronic disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that affects the immune system, weakening the body’s ability to defend itself against infections, leaving it vulnerable, and putting life at risk. It is transmitted through sexual contact or infected blood and can be transmitted from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding the baby.

It is important to mention that the virus is not contracted by hugging, kissing, or shaking hands with an infected person, nor does it spread through the air, water, or food. This infection can be contracted by anyone regardless of age, race, gender, or sexual orientation.

The risk factors that increase its appearance are:

Having unprotected sex.
Having multiple sexual partners.
Having a sexually transmitted infection.
Intravenous drug use.

Signs and symptoms HIV/AIDS

Symptoms vary depending on the stage of infection. So it is usually classified into:

Acute HIV:

Decreased body weight.
Headache.
Sore throat.
Sores in the oral mucosa.
Sore muscles and joints.
Diarrhea.
Rash.
Swollen lymph nodes.
Excessive sweating.
Coughing fits.

During this stage, the infection spreads faster.

Chronic HIV:

It can last for years, where the virus is in the body, but there are no symptoms, although some patients develop other serious ailments at the same time.

Symptomatic HIV:

With the spread of the virus in the body and the weakening of the immune system, the following symptoms may appear:

Decreased body weight.
Candidiasis.
Tiredness and weakness.
Diarrheal episodes.
High fever.
Swollen lymph nodes.
Herpes Zoster.
Appearance of pneumonia.

If you have these symptoms or suspect you are infected with HIV, you must see a specialist to assess you, since this disease, if not treated in time, can trigger AIDS, which is when HIV is in an advanced state and has seriously impaired the immune system, leading to various infections or other conditions such as cancer.

Diagnosis and treatment HIV/AIDS

Once your doctor analyzes your symptoms and clinical history, they will perform various diagnostic tests, including:

Antibody analysis.
Antigen and antibody tests.
Nucleic acid tests.

If you are diagnosed with HIV, your doctor will assess whether you require additional tests to determine the progress of the disease. There is currently no cure for HIV/AIDS, but antiretroviral therapy, which is a combination of several drugs, helps:

Inhibit drug-resistant strains of HIV.
Measure drug resistance.
Enhance the elimination of the virus in the blood.

Remember that the best way to prevent HIV/AIDS is by taking care of your health and avoiding the risk factors that can contribute to its spread.

At ABC Medical Center’s Internal Medicine Department, we offer health care services with the highest quality and safety, from the prevention, diagnosis, timely treatment, and monitoring of infectious, respiratory, endocrinological, dermatological, rheumatic, nephrological, gastrointestinal, and hematological pathologies of both chronic-degenerative diseases and acute conditions, through a comprehensive and multidisciplinary model.

Related centers and departments

Internal medicine
High Specialty Surgery Center
Radiology and Molecular Imaging
Clinical Laboratory

Fuentes:

flsida.org
medlineplus.gov
mayoclinic.org
who.int
msdmanuals.com
medigraphic.com
Pérez BJE, Viana CLF. Factores asociados a la no adherencia terapéutica a los antirretrovirales en personas con VIH/sida. Rev Cubana Med Trop. 2020;72(2):1-14.
Suárez GPY, Martínez LT. Rehabilitación en pacientes con virus de inmunodeficiencia humana. Rev Cubana Med Gen Integr. 2020;36(3):.
de Castro CC, Reis RK, Souza NLA, et al. Caracterización epidemiológica de personas que viven con VIH/sida. Rev Cuba Enf. 2019;35(1):1-10.
Bien GMI, Sol BY, Yero QY, et al. Estrategia de prevención para disminuir el índice de contagio por VIH/SIDA. Policlínico Bayamo. 2018. Mul Med. 2020;24(3):557-568.

How can we help you?

The dissemination of the content of this material is for informational purposes only and does not replace, under any circumstance or condition, a consultation with a specialist doctor, for which the ABC Medical Center is not responsible for the different use that may be given to it. If you require more information related to the subject, we suggest you contact the specialist doctor you trust directly.

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Comparison of COVID-19 vaccines

Pfizer-
BioNTech

Pfizer-BioNTech

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Vaccine type: mRNA
Effectiveness: 95% after the second dose in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.

No Does not contain egg, latex, or preservatives.

How many doses are needed?
Two doses are needed, at least 21 days apart (or up to six weeks apart, if necessary).

Who should or shouldn’t get the vaccine?
People who should receive the vaccine are those over 16 years old.
People who should not receive the vaccine are those who have a history of anaphylactic shock (severe allergy) or who are allergic to any component of this vaccine such as polyethylene glycol (PEG) or polysorbate.

What are the possible side effects of the vaccine?
Pain where the injection was given, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, chills, joint pain, fever, nausea, malaise, and swollen lymph nodes.

How long will it take for me to be protected and what does it protect me from?
After 14 days of having the complete scheme (after the administration of the 2nd dose), the protection period is still under study. It protects us from serious COVID-19 or requiring hospitalization.

Moderna

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Vaccine type: mRNA
Effectiveness: 94.5% after the second dose in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.

Does not contain egg, latex, or preservatives.

How many doses are needed?
Two doses are needed, at least 28 days apart (or up to six weeks apart, if necessary).

Who should or shouldn’t get the vaccine?
People who should receive the vaccine are those over 18 years old.
People who should not receive the vaccine are those who have a history of anaphylactic shock (severe allergy) or who are allergic to any component of this vaccine.

What are the possible side effects of the vaccine?
Pain where the injection was given, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, chills, joint pain, fever, nausea, and swollen lymph nodes in the arm in which you received the injection.

Janssen/
Johnson
& Johnson

Janssen/ Johnson & Johnson

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Vector-based vaccine.
Effectiveness: 72.0% in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.
85% in the prevention of severe COVID-19.

Does not contain egg, latex, or preservatives./strong>

How many doses are needed?
Only one dose in needed.

What are the possible side effects of the vaccine?
Pain where the injection was given, headache, fatigue, muscle pain, chills, fever, and nausea.

How long will it take for me to be protected and what does it protect me from?
After 28 days of having the complete scheme (the last dose applied), the protection period is still under study. It protects us from 85% serious COVID-19 or requiring hospitalization.

AstraZeneca
and
Oxford
University

AstraZeneca and Oxford University

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Adenovirus vector-based vaccine.
Effectiveness: 82% after the second dose in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.

How many doses are needed?
Two doses are needed, at least 56 days apart (or up to 84 days apart, if necessary).

What are the possible side effects of the vaccine?
Pain where the injection was given, fatigue, headache, myalgia, arthralgia, and fever, which were mild to moderate in intensity and disappeared within 48 hours of vaccination.

Sputnik V

What is its effectiveness and what does it refer to?

Adenovirus vector-based vaccine.
Effectiveness: 92% after the second dose in the prevention of symptomatic COVID-19.

How many doses are needed?
Two doses are needed, at least 21 days apart (or up to six weeks apart, if necessary).

What is HIV/AIDS?

Signs and symptoms HIV/AIDS

Diagnosis and treatment HIV/AIDS

Related centers and departments

Fuentes:

Index

Specialist in HIV/AIDS