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Essay / Understanding the human immunodeficiency virus epidemic
Human immunodeficiency virus, simply known as HIV, is a virus that infects the cells of the immune system that defend against viruses, converts into viruses and reproduces these same viral cells. With fewer immune system cells, it becomes more difficult to stay healthy. The virus is spread through the transfer of bodily fluids from an HIV-positive person, including blood, semen, breast milk, and other bodily fluids. Sexual intercourse and the sharing of needles or drug paraphernalia are the main factors in the spread of HIV. HIV quickly became an epidemic not only in the United States but around the world beginning in 1981, with the detection of the first case. By 1983, the epidemic had shown its destructive force, according to the University of San Francisco (2011), there were up to 3,000 AIDS infections, caused by HIV, and 1,000 deaths. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayThe first man to be cured of HIV was Timothy Ray Brown, a patient who contracted HIV, was diagnosed with leukemia and had to undergo a bone marrow transplant and thanks to this transplant, his HIV was cured. This was because, coincidentally, the match for Brown had a mutation in the same cells affected by the virus. Although this could not happen again due to the extreme rarity of finding bone marrow with this same mutation, Brown appears to be cured of HIV and has been living off his antiretroviral treatment ever since. This problem exists today because there is no real cure for HIV, but there is antiretroviral treatment (ART) that can slow the progression of the disease. Another problem is that 1.1 million people in the United States are living with HIV today. However, 1 in 7 people are unaware that they have it. This is happening all over the world, without borders, and the source of HIV is identified as a chimpanzee in West Africa. In 1959, the first man with the disease was from Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Today the concentration is in eastern and southern Africa. at 53%. Risks to the community going forward are trying to maintain monitoring of the needs of HIV victims, new infections, trying to prevent new infections, and managing care. Another risk to communities in the future is due to the ability of the virus to mutate and become resistant to new HIV treatments in development. In the United States, the communities most at risk and most affected are gay, bisexual men, or transgender women who have sex with men. Deaths from human immunodeficiency virus have been declining since 1996 in the United States and Europe. to the use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). However, this is only a therapeutic option and not a cure. Because there is no cure for HIV, to solve the problem we are considering prevention measures including these two procedures. The first is a public health behavioral intervention program that involves providing information such as awareness of disease transmission. This includes preventing testing for the disease and making sure your partner has safe sex, uses sterile needles, and limits their sexual partners. The second prevention measure is a medication called pre-exposure prophylaxis (PeEP), which is a pill that must be taken daily and is used for people who are not HIV positive but..