HIV Epidemiology
Grand Canyon University: NRS-427V Concepts in Community and Public Health
November 23, 2014
Epidemiology and Nursing Research: HIV
HIV is a disease that has affected millions of people worldwide. From the wealthy to the poor, this virus has had devastating effects on the lives of families and individuals. According to the AIDS Institute, HIV was first discovered in a patient from West Africa. It is believed that chimpanzees carried the “simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)” which transferred to humans when they came into contact with the infected animals’ blood after the animal had been caught while hunting. SIV then developed into HIV once in the human blood stream. HIV “has existed in the United States since at least the mid- to late 1970s.” (AI, n.d.) There is no cure for the virus. HIV is transferred through body fluids: blood, semen, fluids from the vagina and/or rectum, and breast milk. The virus is transmitted when bodily fluids come in contact with a mucous membrane or from direct entry into the blood stream such as an intravenous injection. The highest rates of transmission are anal sex, vaginal sex, and “sharing needles, syringes, rinse water, or other equipment (works) used to prepare injection drugs with someone who has HIV.” (CDC, 2014) Additional ways that the virus may be spread that are less common are from mother to infant during birth or pregnancy, through blood transfusions, or by suffering a needle stick while at work. According to the CDC, the stages of the virus are: acute infection, which occurs 2-4 weeks after the patient has been infected. The patient will present with symptoms similar to the flu. “During this period of infection, large amounts of HIV are being produced. The virus uses important immune system cells called CD4 cells to make copies of itself and destroys these cells in the process.” (CDC, 2014) The next stage is the dormant or inactive stage. During this stage the virus is still active but at
November 23, 2014
Epidemiology and Nursing Research: HIV
HIV is a disease that has affected millions of people worldwide. From the wealthy to the poor, this virus has had devastating effects on the lives of families and individuals. According to the AIDS Institute, HIV was first discovered in a patient from West Africa. It is believed that chimpanzees carried the “simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)” which transferred to humans when they came into contact with the infected animals’ blood after the animal had been caught while hunting. SIV then developed into HIV once in the human blood stream. HIV “has existed in the United States since at least the mid- to late 1970s.” (AI, n.d.) There is no cure for the virus. HIV is transferred through body fluids: blood, semen, fluids from the vagina and/or rectum, and breast milk. The virus is transmitted when bodily fluids come in contact with a mucous membrane or from direct entry into the blood stream such as an intravenous injection. The highest rates of transmission are anal sex, vaginal sex, and “sharing needles, syringes, rinse water, or other equipment (works) used to prepare injection drugs with someone who has HIV.” (CDC, 2014) Additional ways that the virus may be spread that are less common are from mother to infant during birth or pregnancy, through blood transfusions, or by suffering a needle stick while at work. According to the CDC, the stages of the virus are: acute infection, which occurs 2-4 weeks after the patient has been infected. The patient will present with symptoms similar to the flu. “During this period of infection, large amounts of HIV are being produced. The virus uses important immune system cells called CD4 cells to make copies of itself and destroys these cells in the process.” (CDC, 2014) The next stage is the dormant or inactive stage. During this stage the virus is still active but at
References: The AIDS Institute. (n.d.) Where did HIV come from? Retrieved from: http://www.theaidsinstitute.org/node/259 Centers for Disease Controal and Prevention. 2014. HIV/ AIDS. Retrieved from: http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/basics/index.html Maurer, Frances, Smith, Claudia. 2013. Community/Public Health Nursing Practice. 5th Edition. Saunders. World Health Organization. 2014. The Determinants of Health. Retrieved from: http://www.who.int/hia/evidence/doh/en/