HIV
AIDS have been the scourge of the world in recent times. It has
significant impact on health.
The country is now estimated to have about 3 million people infected
with HIV.This infection is on the rise in South Asia and Southeast
Asia.By 1990 about half a million people were suffering from AIDS in the
world. There is still abysmal ignornance about the disease.
HIV or Human Immunodeficiency Virus is transmitted through
contact with blood and other body fluids. This disease was identified in
June 1981 and has been the plague of the 20th century. The first virus
discovered in the developed world was named as HIV 1 the virus belongs
to the Retrovirus Family under the subfamily Lentiviridae. The initial
HIV infection progresses into a more severe and debilitating condition
where it is associated with a variety of other infections and is called AIDS or Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome.
HIV infection can be diagnosed by
- Serology
- Antigen detection
- Co cultivation of the virus
- Molecular biological technique
Out of all diagnostic modalities available today, the serological tests
remain the best procedure of HIV diagnosis. Serological tests are the
assay that identify antibodies produced as a result of stimulation of
the immune sytem of the human host by the viral antigens.
Oral lesions associated with HIV infection and AIDS are :
- Leukoplakia
- Kaposi's sarcoma and
- Candidiasis.
Other than the common oral conditions there will be systemic conditions
such as protozoal infections, fungal infections, other viral infections
and mycobacterial infections. It is absolutely essential to understand
that post exposure protocols must be followed to reduce the probability
of seroconversion, by taking antiviral drugs immediately after exposure
to a patient infected with HIV.
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