Aids and their handling

Until now, hear the words HIV / AIDS as a terrible scourge. In fact, if understood in a logical, HIV / AIDS can be easily avoided. How is that? 

Prevalence of HIV / AIDS in Indonesia has been moving at a very alarming rate. In 1987, HIV / AIDS cases are found for the first time only on the island of Bali. While the present (2007), almost all provinces in Indonesia have discovered cases of HIV / AIDS. 

The problem of HIV / AIDS has long since become common issue that continues to siphon attention of various circles, especially the health sector. But in fact still a lot of information and understanding of these health problems are still unknown even further by the community. 

HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. HIV present in a person's body fluids such as blood, genital fluids (semen or vaginal fluids of an infected) and breast milk that has been infected.  

While AIDS is a syndrome of decreased immunity caused by HIV. People who develop AIDS very easily infected by various diseases because the immune system of patients had.

HIV can be transmitted to others through:

    * Sexual intercourse (anal, oral, vaginal) unprotected (without condoms) with men who have been infected with HIV.
    * Syringe / piercings / tattoos are not sterile and are used interchangeably

    * Obtain a blood transfusion containing HIV virus

    * Mother-to-child HIV-positive patients when in the womb, during birth or through breast milk (milk) 

Transmission
HIV is not transmitted through normal social relationships such as handshakes, touching, kissing usual, hugging, eating and drinking use of equipment, mosquito bites, swimming pools, use the bathroom or WC / toilet which is equal to or lived in the same house with people living with HIV / AIDS ( PLWHA). PLWHA are living with HIV or AIDS. While OHIDA (People living with HIV or AIDS), namely the family (children, wife, husband, father, mother) or friends of people living with HIV or AIDS. 

More than 80% of HIV infection affects mainly the productive age group of men, but the proportion of female HIV patients tend to increase. Infection in infants and children, 90% occurred from mother with HIV. Until a few years, a person with HIV do not show clinical symptoms of HIV infection, however, that person can pass on to others. After that, AIDS began to grow and show signs or symptoms. 

Clinical signs of AIDS patients: 

  1. Body weight decreased by more than 10% within 1 month
   2. Chronic diarrhea lasting more than 1 month
   3. Fever lasting more than 1 month
   4. Impairment of consciousness and neurological disorders
   5. Dementia / HIV encephalopath
Minor symptoms:

   1. A cough settled more than 1 month
   2. Generalized dermatitis is itchy
   3. The existence of multisegmental Herpes zoster and recurrent
   4. Recurring fungal infection in a woman's genitals

HIV and AIDS can affect anyone. But on the vulnerable groups have a great risk of contracting HIV causes AIDS, namely:

   1. People who behave sexually with multiple partners without using condoms
   2. Injecting drug users who use needles together
   3. Sexual partners of injecting drug users
   4. Infants whose mothers are HIV positive

HIV can be prevented by the chain of transmission, namely, using a condom at every risk sex, not using needles bersam together, and where possible not to give milk to the child if the mother is HIV positive. Until now there is no medicine that can cure AIDS, but that there is a drug to suppress the development of the HIV virus so that the quality of life for people living with HIV is increasing. This medicine must be taken throughout life. 

Screening With Modern Technology
Most HIV tests are antibody tests that measure antibodies made by the body to fight HIV. He takes time for the immune system to produce enough antibodies to be detected by antibody tests. This time period can vary from one person to another.

This period is usually diseput as a 'window period'. Most people will develop detectable antibodies within 2 to 8 weeks. However, there is the possibility that some individuals will require more time to develop antibodies that can be detected. So, if the initial negative HIV test performed within 3 months after possible exposure to germs, repeated tests should be done about 3 months later, to avoid the possibility of false negative results. 97% of men will develop antibodies in the first 3 months after HIV infection occurs. In very rare cases, it will take 6 months to develop antibodies to HIV.

Another type of test is a test of RNA, which can detect HIV directly. The time between HIV infection and detection of RNA is between 9-11 days. This test, which is more expensive and used less often than antibody tests, have been used in several areas in the United States.

In most cases the EIA (enzyme immunoassay) was used on blood samples taken from a vein, is the most common screening test to detect HIV antibodies. EIA positive (reactive) should be used with conformation like Western Blot test to confirm a positive diagnosis.  

There are several types of EIA tests that use other body fluids for antibodies to HIV.

They are :

    *

      Oral Fluid Test. Using oral fluid (not saliva) collected from the mouth using a special tool. This is an EIA antibody test similar to blood tests by EIA. Test conformation with Western blot method performed with the same sample.

    *

      Urine Test. Using the urine, not blood. Sensitivity and specificity of this test is not as good as blood tests and oral fluid. It also needs test conformation with Western blot method with the same urine samples.

If a patient is HIV-positive results, it does not mean that her life partner is also positive. HIV can not be transmitted every time there was a sexual relationship. The only way to know whether these patients have a life partner HIV positive or not is to perform HIV tests.

Test HIV during pregnancy is important, because anti-viral therapy can improve maternal health and reduce the likelihood of an HIV-positive pregnant women to transmit HIV to her child on before, during, or after birth. Therapy should be initiated as early as possible in pregnancy.