Is It True That If You Get A Piercing Or Tattoo Youll Get Hepatitis C
Even licensed, commercial tattoo studios can have spotty hygiene and cleaning practices. If the equipment the tattoo artist or piercer uses is clean and sterile, you dont have an increased risk of getting hepatitis C.
If the equipment looks less then pristine or you have any hesitations after meeting with the artist, reconsider your choice, and look for a more sterile alternative.
very rare . This statistic is based on heterosexual partners in monogamous sexual relationships.
Your risk for contracting hepatitis C through a sexual encounter is higher if you have multiple partners, engage in rough sex, or already have an STD.
Today, most people are infected with hepatitis C after sharing dirty needles or other paraphernalia for drug use. In rare cases, you can contract hepatitis C by using a tool that has an infected persons blood on it, such as toothbrushes and razors.
Question & Answer: How Is Hiv Transmitted
Most of people misunderstand about AIDS and HIV. Some of them are accustomed to say AIDS infection that is wrong. The correct world is HIV Infection. Lets learn what is the difference between HIV and AIDS?
HIV is a virus that causes AIDS. Many people live for many years with HIV without symptoms.
AIDS is a set of symptoms caused by HIV. It attacks the immune system. A persons immune system will get weaker and weaker until no longer fight off life-threatening infections and diseases.
The complications caused by AIDS may not result to death. People with HIV can enjoy a long life and control its by taking antiretroviral treatment which is effective and helps boost their immune system.
How do you catch HIV?
All bodily fluids contain dissimilar concentration of the virus:
- High concentration of the virus: blood, vaginal fluids, leucorrhea, menstrual blood, breast milk
- Low concentration of the virus: tear, saliva, snot, sputum
- Almost completely virus free: stools, urine, sweat
Why does each bodily fluid contain dissimilar concentration of the virus?
HIV cannot grow or reproduce on its own. Instead, the virus attached itself to white blood cell and fuses with it. Therefore, bodily fluids that contain white blood cell or blood have high concentration of the virus such as blood, vaginal fluids, leucorrhea, menstrual blood, pus. On the other hand, bodily fluids that do not contain blood or white blood cell have low concentration of the virus such as urine, stools and sweat.
Can Hiv Pass From Mothers To Their Babies
Infection can pass from pregnant women living with HIV to their babies in the womb and during birth. Taking HIV medications during pregnancy and childbirth dramatically lowers the risk of a baby becoming infected with HIV.
After birth, transmission can occur through breast milk. The highest risk may be in the early months after birth. It is recommended that new mothers who are living with HIV formula-feed their babies rather than breast-feed.
If you are a woman living with HIV and you intend to become pregnant, or you find out that you have during your pregnancy, talk to your provider immediately about ways to minimize the chances that your baby will become infected, too.
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What Are Hiv And Aids
HIV is the virus that causes AIDS . HIV attacks the immune system by destroying specific white blood cells called CD4 positive T cells that are vital to fighting off infection. The resulting shortage of these cells leaves people infected with HIV vulnerable to other infections and diseases, and additional complications.
AIDS is the final stage of HIV infection. A person infected with HIV is diagnosed with AIDS when he or she has a dangerously low number of CD4+ T cells as well as one or more opportunistic infections, such as some types of pneumonia or tuberculosis, that do not typically affect people with healthy immune systems.
Although HIV infection and AIDS primarily affect the immune system, they also disturb the nervous system and can lead to a wide range of severe neurological disorders, particularly if HIV goes untreated and progresses to AIDS. Many of the most severe neurological conditions can be prevented with antiretroviral therapy. However, even individuals who receive this treatment can develop less severe neurological and cognitive difficulties.
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Its Easy To Tell The Symptoms Of Hiv
The symptoms of HIV can differ from person-to-person and some people may not get any symptoms at all. Without treatment, the virus will get worse over time and damage your immune system over time. There are three stages of HIV infection with different possible effects.
Also, you also cant tell by looking at someone whether they have HIV or not. Many people don’t show signs of any symptoms. And, for people living with HIV who are on effective treatment, they are just as likely to be as healthy as everyone else.
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How Is Hiv Recognized
Doctors use laboratory tests to confirm HIV infection. The Elisa and Western Blot analyses identify people who have been exposed to HIV. These tests determine if the blood contains particular antibodies that result from contact with the virus. They do not identify who among a group of infected individuals will develop the disease. The presence of antibodies or HIV markers means the person has been infected with HIV but no one can predict when and if they will get AIDS related symptoms.
Doctors diagnose AIDS by blood tests and the presence of specific illnesses such as pneumocystis carinii pneumonia or Kaposis sarcoma. These diseases overcome the weakened immune system and are responsible for the high death rate among AIDS patients.
Infection And Infectious Diseases
HIV is able to enter the body via intact mucous membranes, eczematous or injured skin or mucosa and by parenteral inoculation. When transmitted by sexual contact, HIV attaches first to dendritic cells or macrophages/monocytes HIV using CCR-5 as a co-receptor is then preferentially replicated . HIV is taken up by macrophages and replicated as shown for M cells in the mucosa . HIV exposure to blood cells can result in the direct infection of T helper cells and the transmission of R5 and X4 viruses . As mentioned above, 1 HID is equivalent to approximately 500-1,000 HIV particles, with a higher dose required for infection via mucous membranes compared to infection via the bloodstream, e.g. by needle stick injury. The majority of new HIV infections are still transmitted sexually. Another epidemiologically relevant route is parenteral administration of drugs and also snorting of drugs with epistaxis.
Transmission of HIV via blood or transplanted organs, including bone, is possible from about days 5-6 after infection of the donor. Mother-to-child transmission has been demonstrated from the 12th week of gestation, but transmission occurs predominantly in the final trimester and particularly shortly before or during birth . HIV can be transmitted via breast milk .
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Symptoms Of Hiv Infection
Most people experience a short flu-like illness 2 to 6 weeks after HIV infection, which lasts for a week or 2.
After these symptoms disappear, HIV may not cause any symptoms for many years, although the virus continues to damage your immune system.
This means many people with HIV do not know they’re infected.
Anyone who thinks they could have HIV should get tested.
Some people are advised to have regular tests as they’re at particularly high risk.
Semen Vaginal Fluids And Anal Mucus
If an HIV positive person has sex without a condom, and they do not have an undetectable viral load, HIV can get into the other persons blood because it lives in the semen, vaginal fluid and anal mucus. There does need to be a tear or graze in the other person for the HIV to enter into their body. A condom stops any fluid being passed to the other person, and it also stops unwanted pregnancy and getting other sexually transmitted infections.
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How Is Hiv Spread From Person To Person
HIV can only be spread through specific activities. In the United States, the most common ways are:
- Having vaginal or anal sex with someone who has HIV without using a condom or taking medicines to prevent or treat HIV. Anal sex is riskier than vaginal sex.
- Sharing injection drug equipment , such as needles, with someone who has HIV.
Less common ways are:
- From mother to child during pregnancy, birth, or breastfeeding. However, the use of HIV medicines and other strategies have helped lower the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV to 1% or less in the United States.
- Getting stuck with an HIV-contaminated needle or other sharp object. This is a risk mainly for health care workers. The risk is very low.
HIV is spread only in extremely rare cases by:
- Having oral sex. But in general, the chance that an HIV-negative person will get HIV from oral sex with an HIV-positive partner is extremely low.
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People Who Are At Increased Risk
HIV can affect anyone but people who are at a higher risk include:
- men who have had unprotected sex with men
- women who have had unprotected sex with men who have sex with men
- people who have had unprotected sex with a person who has lived in, or travelled in, Africa
- people who inject drugs
- people who have had unprotected sex with somebody who has injected drugs
- people who have another sexually transmitted infection
- people who have received a blood transfusion while in Africa, eastern Europe, the countries of the former Soviet Union, Asia or central and southern America
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How Does Hiv Spread
HIV spreads when blood or certain bodily fluids that have high amounts of active virus are exposed to ones bloodstream.
For a person to contract HIV, there must be enough active virus in the fluid that encounters the bloodstream. This can occur through:
- a mucous membrane, or moist skin, such as in the mouth, rectum, penis, or vagina
- a significant opening in the skin
- injection
Transmission of the virus most often happens during anal or vaginal sex, but it can also occur by sharing needles.
Factors that affect the survival of HIV outside the body include:
- Temperature. HIV stays alive and active when kept in the cold but is killed by heat.
- Sunlight. Ultraviolet light in sunshine damages the virus, so its no longer able to reproduce.
- Amount of virus in the fluid. Generally, the higher the level of HIV virus in the fluid, the longer it will take for all of it to become inactive.
- Level of acidity. HIV survives best at a pH around 7 and becomes inactive when the environment is even just a little more or less acidic.
- Environmental humidity. Drying will lower the viral concentration of active virus as well.
When any of these factors arent perfect for HIV in its environment, survival time of the virus goes down.
Can You Get Hiv Through Oral Sex
The risk of HIV from oral sex is very small unless you or your partner have large open sores on the genital area or bleeding gums/sores in your mouth.
There is only a slightly increased risk if a woman being given oral sex is HIV-positive and is menstruating. However, you can always use a dental dam to eliminate these risks.
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If You Already Have Hiv
If you are infected with HIV, you can greatly lower the risk of spreading the infection to your sex partner by starting treatment when your immune system is still healthy.
Experts recommend starting treatment as soon as you know you are infected.footnote 21
Studies have shown that early treatment greatly lowers the risk of spreading HIV to an uninfected partner.footnote 22, footnote 23
Your partner may also be able to take medicine to prevent getting infected.footnote 17 This is called pre-exposure prophylaxis .
Steps to avoid spreading HIV
If you are infected with HIV, you can greatly lower the risk of spreading the infection to your sex partner by starting treatment when your immune system is still healthy.
- Take antiretroviral medicines. Getting treated for HIV can help prevent the spread of HIV to people who are not infected.
- Tell your sex partner or partners about your behaviour and whether you are HIV-positive.
- Follow safer sex practices, such as using condoms.
- Do not donate blood, plasma, semen, body organs, or body tissues.
- Do not share personal items, such as toothbrushes, razors, or sex toys, that may be contaminated with blood, semen, or vaginal fluids.
Hepatitis C Will Go Away On Its Own Wont It
Two types of hepatitis C exist. The first, acute hepatitis C, is a short-term infection. The main complication of acute hepatitis C is that it will develop into long-term, or chronic, hepatitis C.
The early stages of a hepatitis C infection may cause few symptoms. During this phase, you may not even know you have an infection.
About 30 percent of people who develop an acute hepatitis C infection will be able to clear the virus without treatment. Once it has developed into chronic hepatitis C, the virus will need treatment before it will go away.
Doctors arent sure why some peoples immune systems can eliminate the virus and some cant. Treatment for acute hepatitis C is the same as chronic hepatitis C. Treatment reduces the risk of an acute hepatitis C infection turning into a chronic one.
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Mother To Child Transmission
Having HIV does not mean a woman cant have a healthy baby. The key is to work with a doctor to take all the necessary precautions.
Aside from blood and sexual secretions, HIV can also be transmitted during pregnancy or through breast milk while breastfeeding. Mother to child transmissions can also occur at any point during pregnancy, as well as during delivery.
All pregnant women should be screened for HIV. Antiretroviral therapy is strongly recommended for pregnant women with HIV to achieve viral suppression. This will subsequently reduce the risk of transmitting HIV to the baby during pregnancy and labor. Sometimes a caesarean delivery is recommended to reduce transmission during delivery if the infection is not suppressed.
Its also important to protect the baby after birth. Breastfeeding might not be recommended in some cases, though consistent viral suppression may reduce the transmission of HIV through breast milk. A doctor may also recommend that the baby take antiretroviral therapy for up to six weeks after birth.
Overall, great strides have been made in decreasing HIV transmission between mothers and infants due to improved screening and use of anti-HIV drugs during pregnancy.
In the United States, the
For How Long Does The Hiv Virus Survive Outside The Body
Answered by: Dr Anuj Sharma | World Health Organization, Country Office for India, New Delhi
Q: Why is it said that the HIV virus dies once it is outside the body? All viruses become inactive once outside the body – is that not so, and moreover, as far as I know a virus never dies and can always get into its reproduction mode once inside the host cell. So, in this regard I want to know that if suppose I put a drop of HIV infected blood on a slide, keep it exposed for some time, say a couple of hours, and then if I bring an open wound in contact with the dried blood, will the person get infected with HIV?
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Can You Breastfeed If You Have Hepatitis C
You can breastfeed your baby if you have a hepatitis C infection. Researchers have never found a case where a mother with hepatitis C has passed the infection to her infant through breastfeeding.
Hepatitis C is transmitted through contact with infected blood. Breastmilk doesnt come into contact with blood. However, if your nipples or the areola are cracked or bleeding, you should avoid breastfeeding until theyre healed.
Use a breast pump to express milk until your nipples are healed, and talk with your infants pediatrician about supplemental milk. Once the cracked or scabbed areas are healed, you can resume breastfeeding.
How Does Hiv Affect The Body
The human immune system involves many types of cells which guard against germs responsible for most diseases. The immune systems most important guard cells are B-cells and T-cells, which are special white blood cells. B-cells and T-cells cooperate to fight any germ that attacks the human body.
B-cells produce particular proteins, called antibodies, that try to neutralize the invading germ. After a person recovers from an infection, these antibodies continue to circulate in the bloodstream, acting as part of the immune systems memory. Immune system memory explains why a person rarely suffers a second attack from an infectious disease such as measles. If the same germ is encountered again, the antibodies will recognize and neutralize it. T-cells attack the germ directly and try to kill it.
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Perceived Vs Documented Risk
A perceived risk is one that is based on belief rather than fact and persists despite the unlikeliness of the event ever occurring. By contrast, a documented risk is based on statistical evidence of something actually occurring. Where a perceived risk is about theory, a documented risk is about the fact.
With regards to HIV, the potential to infect does not translate into an actual risk unless the exposure satisfies four specific conditions:
- There must be body fluids in which HIV can thrive. This includes semen, blood, vaginal fluid, and breast milk. HIV cannot thrive in parts of the body that have high acidity .
- There must be a route by which HIV can enter the body. This includes sexual intercourse, shared needles, occupational exposure, or transmission from mother to child.
- The virus must be able to reach vulnerable cells inside the body. This requires the rupture or deep penetration of the skin and/or the absorption of the virus through the mucosal tissues of the vagina or anus. Scrapes, abrasions, and skin prick do not offer the deep penetration needed for an infection to occur. HIV cannot pass through intact skin.
- There must be sufficient quantities of virus in the body fluids. Saliva, sweat, and tears all either contain enzymes the inhibit HIV or have a pH hostile to HIV.
Unless all of these conditions are satisfied, an HIV infection simply cannot occur.