Gourt > Society > Issues > Health > Conditions and Diseases > Sexually Transmitted Diseases > AIDS (25)
Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome or Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS or Aids) is a collection of symptoms and infections in humans resulting from the specific damage to the immune system caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The late stage of the condition leaves individuals prone to opportunistic infections and tumors. Although treatments for AIDS and HIV exist to slow the virus's progression, there is no known cure. HIV is transmitted through direct contact of a mucous membrane or the bloodstream with a bodily fluid containing HIV, such as blood, semen, vaginal fluid, preseminal fluid, and breast milk. This transmission can come in the form of anal, vaginal or oral sex, blood transfusion, contaminated needles, exchange between mother and baby during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding, or other exposure to one of the above bodily fluids.
Most researchers believe that HIV originated in sub-Saharan Africa during the twentieth century;
it is now a pandemic, with an estimated 38.6 million people now living with the disease worldwide. As of January 2006, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization (WHO) estimate that AIDS has killed more than 25 million people since it was first recognized on June 5, 1981, making it one of the most destructive epidemics in recorded history. In 2005 alone, AIDS claimed an estimated 2.4 - 3.3 million lives, of which more than 570,000 were children. A third of these deaths are occurring in sub-Saharan Africa, retarding economic growth and destroying human capital. Antiretroviral treatment reduces both the mortality and the morbidity of HIV infection, but routine access to antiretroviral medication is not available in all countries. HIV/AIDS stigma is more severe than that associated with other life-threatening conditions and extends beyond the disease itself to providers and even volunteers involved with the care of people living with HIV.
More on [ AIDS ]
Looking for the Light: A Decade of Living with HIV - A series of multimedia essays about the past decade of the AIDS crisis, with topics ranging from AIDS treatments to AIDS adoptions.
Meta Description: [ Multimedia essays about the human face of the AIDS epidemic. ]
AIDS Action - Resources from AIDS Action, including information about federal and state appropriations, Medicaid, court cases, and housing.
AIDS Alert International - A non-governmental educational organisation promoting the control and prevention of HIV and AIDS globally.
AIDS Economics - Aims to help researchers and policymakers to define and implement effective AIDS policy. From the World Bank.
Meta Description: [ A Joint World Bank/UNAIDS website on the economics of HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, helping researchers and governments in developing countries define and implement humane, cost-effective policies. ]
AIDS-Related Stigma - Information about the problem of AIDS-related stigma, referring to prejudice, discounting, discrediting, and discrimination directed at people perceived to have AIDS or HIV.
Meta Description: [ Scientific research and the latest news about HIV/AIDS stigma and AIDS education ]
AIDSchannel.org - Global news, resources and information on AIDS as a social, human rights and sustainable development issue.
Articles about AIDS - Living and coping with AIDS. Topics include a support group in Brooklyn and AIDS in Vietnam.
AVERT AIDS - Information about HIV infection, testing, prevention and treatment; plus pages about AIDS in specific countries, statistics, and personal stories.
Meta Description: [ AVERT.org provides AIDS & HIV information, including information about HIV/AIDS infection, HIV testing, prevention, global and African information, AIDS treatment, statistics and personal stories. ]
Beating the Gay Stigma of AIDS - Article on the 2001 United Nations special session on HIV and AIDS. From the Gully; a queer activist e-zine.
Meta Description: [ Twenty years into the AIDS epidemic, the United Nations finally held a Special Session on HIV and AIDS. Both gay activists and Muslim fundamentalists alike may be ignoring the basics.
From The Gully. ]
Global AIDS Crisis - Basic information and links about the AIDS epidemic, including reports on Asia and Africa.
Meta Description: [ World Vision is a Christian relief and development organization dedicated to helping children and their communities worldwide reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty. ]
Health Global Access Project - Campaign to eliminate barriers to global access to affordable life-sustaining medicines for people living with HIV/AIDS. Organization and campaign details, news, press releases, resources.
Hemophilia and HIV/AIDS - A collection of resources related to hemophiliacs and HIV, including topics such as the safety of the blood supply and tained blood products, from The Body.
HIV and AIDS images - Several educational posters from the mid-1980's until the present. Images of condoms, ribbons, pills, T-cells. Mostly UK images.
Meta Description: [ A historical selection of HIV and AIDS posters from around the world ]
HIV InSite - Gateway to HIV/AIDS knowledge from the University of California, San Francisco. Comprehensive medical and societal news.
Meta Description: [ HIV InSite's information on Australia and New Zealand features statistics and multidisciplinary research on and analysis of the context, impact, and response to HIV/AIDS throughout the region. ]
HIV/AIDS and the Mentally Handicapped - Resources from The Body related to HIV positive mentally handicapped persons.
HIV/AIDS Anti-Stigma Initiative - Serves as a source of information about HIV/AIDS stigma, with general information, links to resources, real stories, and downloadable materials/tools.
Older People and HIV/AIDS - Resources on HIV and the elderly, senior citizens, and older adults, from The Body.
PASCA (Proyecto Accion SIDA de Centroamerica) - A bilingual information resource page on HIV/AIDS by the Central American HIV/AIDS Prevention Project. Also in English.
Meta Description: [ PASCA es un programa regional para fortalecer la respuesta frente a la epidemia de VIH/SIDA en Centroamérica. PASCA is a regional program designed to strengthen Central America's capacity to respond to the AIDS epidemic. ]
Releases - Features poetry and prose written by people with HIV.
| President Obama Signs Ryan White HIV/AIDS Act | |
| Next Video | |
