What Is The Most Common Mode Of Transmission Of Hiv

Stage : Acute Hiv Infection

Soon after a person contracts HIV, they may develop flu-like symptoms. These symptoms typically appear within and may last for several days or weeks.

The symptoms of an acute HIV infection can include:

• a skin rash that usually does not itch
• muscle aches
• swollen glands in the throat, groin, or armpits
• sores or ulcers in the mouth or genitals
• nausea, vomiting, or both

This is known as a seroconversion illness. Seroconversion is when the body begins to produce antibodies against the virus. This is the bodys natural response to detecting an infection.

At this stage, the virus replicates rapidly. The person has a large amount of HIV in their blood, and the risk of transmitting the virus to others is high.

Not everyone develops symptoms at this stage. Others experience mild flu-like symptoms that go largely unnoticed. This means that people may contract HIV without knowing it, which makes testing very important.

If a person thinks they may have been exposed to HIV, it is important to talk to a healthcare provider for advice, and to ask them about preventative medication called post-exposure prophylaxis .

Healthcare providers can order tests to check for HIV. can detect the virus after 10 days, while others may not detect the infection until 90 days after exposure. People often need to take more than one test for accurate results.

What Is Hiv And What Is Aids

HIV/AIDS are widely known as incurable sexually transmitted diseases, but you might not know the difference between these acronyms and what they stand for.

For simplicityâs sake, HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. HIV stands for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

If a person takes a blood test and receives a diagnosis of HIV, then they are HIV positiveâif a person does not have HIV, then they are HIV negative. HIV causes havoc in a personâs body by weakening their immune system . HIV progressively destroys the cellular part of the immune systemâparticularly types of white blood cells called CD4 cellsâwhich, over time, makes the person become immunodeficient .

As the HIV infection develops in the body, the person will become more and more immunodeficient until they reach a point where they are classified as having Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome . This is often the end stage of an HIV infection, where a personâs body is so immunodeficient that they develop infections, diseases, or cancers and are no longer able to mount a immune defense and fight them off .

There is no cure for HIV . But, if a person does become infected with HIV there are treatments available which can help keep a person healthy.

Is Hiv And Aids An Occupational Concern

Where ever there is the possibility of contact with blood in the workplace, workers should take precautions to prevent contact with the skin, eyes or mucous membranes .

Routine Practices are recommended to prevent the spread of HIV in the workplace. Routine practices are based on the principle that all blood, body fluids, secretions, and excretions except sweat, non-intact skin, and mucous membranes, unless they contain visible blood, may contain transmissible infectious agents. Steps involve using protective clothing such as gloves, gowns or aprons, masks and protective eye wear when dealing with people’s blood and other blood-contaminated body fluids such as semen and vaginal secretions. They also do not apply to saliva except in dentistry where saliva is likely to be contaminated with blood.

Hand washing after contact with blood, blood-contaminated body fluids and soiled items is also recommended to reduce the risk of infection.

The best approach to most diseases is to prevent their occurrence – occupationally-related diseases are no exception. In the case of HIV, prevention is the only cure.

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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.

How Is Hiv Transmitted

HIV is transmitted between humans through the exchange of certain types of bodily fluids. Bodily fluids that can transmit HIV include blood, semen, breast milk, and vaginal fluids .

Not all body fluids can transmit HIV. The following cannot transmit HIV:

• Exchanging saliva, like through closed-mouth kissing or sharing drinks/utensils
• Coming in contact with an HIV positive personâs tears, sneezes, or sweat
• Ordinary physical contact, such as hugging, hand shaking, or touching shared objects like cutlery, cups, or toilet seats .
• Air or water
• Pets and insects cannot carry the virus and infect you, because transmission of HIV is only between humans .

While care needs to be taken in some situationsâlike when having sex or when open injuries are presentâthis certainly does not mean that it is unsafe to be around people with HIV. Think of how you interact with the vast majority of peopleâbodily fluids are not exchanged. Harboring discriminatory thoughts only perpetuates a fearful stigma against someone with HIV, which only hurts the person who has it.

HIV is often transmitted through sexual activity and drug use in adults in the United States . Maternal transmissionâfrom mother to childâis how the infection is spread to infants .

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Diagnosis Of Hiv Infection

• Tests to detect antibodies to the HIV virus in a sample of blood or saliva

• Tests to detect HIV RNA in a sample of blood

Early diagnosis of HIV infection is important because it makes early treatment possible. Early treatment enables infected people to live longer, be healthier, and be less likely to transmit HIV to other people.

Doctors usually ask about risk factors for HIV infection Transmission of HIV Infection Human immunodeficiency virus infection is a viral infection that progressively destroys certain white blood cells and can cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome . HIV is transmitted… read more and about symptoms .

Doctors also do a complete physical examination to check for signs of opportunistic infections, such as swollen lymph nodes and white patches inside the mouth , and for signs of Kaposi sarcoma of the skin or mouth.

Variability In The Fni Among High

The FNI for high-risk groups by region are shown in . The FNI among FSWs was highest in Morocco , Sierra Leone and El Salvador compared to 4% or less in the remaining 23 countries, including India and Thailand , where FSWs play an important role in HIV transmission . Similarly, the FNI among clients was highest in Sierra Leone, Morocco, El Salvador and Benin with 25.6, 23.8, 15.3, and 14.0%, respectively, and varied between 0 and 10.5% across the remaining 22 countries. Overall, the FNI was generally higher among MSM than FSWs and clients , especially in Latin America and the Caribbean , and the Philippines . The FNI among PWID was relatively low and homogenous across countries , except Indonesia, Iran and Russia, where it was very high . However, Indonesias and Russias MOT did not include infections from the low-risk group in their denominator of the total number of HIV infections meaning that the estimated contribution of PWID will be larger than other countries. These estimates, therefore, may not be directly comparable with countries that did include the low-risk group.

The FNI among high-risk groups by region.

a and b shows the FNI among FSWs and clients, and among MSM and PWID, ranked by the reported HIV prevalence in the low-risk group, respectively.

The FNI among high-risk groups by the assumed HIV prevalence in the low-risk group.

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Mode Of Transmission Of Hiv

The HIV infection spreads in the course of the following ways:

• Unprotected sexual interaction with a previously infected person.

• Reusing needles used up by an infected individual.

• From a deceased mother to the baby through the placenta.

• Blood transfusion from an infected individual.

The incubation period of this virus is relatively large and it takes ample time to attack the system, sometimes even 10 years. HIV makes it hard for the patient to ward off any illness.

Ways The Virus Can Spread And Ways It Cannot

• Factors that Increase Risk

HIV is a virus that can be transmitted from someone with HIV to someone without through body fluids like semen, blood, vaginal secretions, and breast milk. HIV is most commonly passed during unprotected sex, primarily anal and vaginal sex, but is also effectively transmitted through . HIV can also be passed from mother to child via the placenta during pregnancy or during childbirth, due to exposure to blood or vaginal fluid, or while breastfeeding.

Theresa Chiechi / Verywell

Some modes of transmission are more efficient than others. In order for HIV to be transmitted, the virus needs to come into contact with porous mucous membranes , pass through breaks and tears in tissues , or enter the bloodstream directly .

Moreover, there is needs to be ample quantities of the virus to breach the bodys frontline immune defenses. This is why HIV cannot be passed through saliva, the environment of which is hostile to the virus, or when the virus is fully suppressed in an HIV-positive person on antiretroviral therapy.

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Preventing Transmission From Mother To Newborn

Pregnant women infected with HIV can transmit the virus to the newborn.

The following can help prevent HIV transmission from mother to newborn Prevention of transmission for infected mothers Human immunodeficiency virus infection is a viral infection that progressively destroys certain white blood cells and causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome . Human immunodeficiency… read more :

• Testing pregnant women to determine whether they are infected with HIV

• If they are infected, treating them with antiretroviral drugs during pregnancy and labor

• Delivering the baby by cesarean rather than by vaginal delivery

• After birth, treating the newborn with zidovudine, given intravenously, for 6 weeks

• If possible, using formula instead of breastfeeding

Bites That Break The Skin

A bite that opens the skin and causes bleeding can lead to the transmission of HIV. However, according to the

goes up with increasing viral load.

Viral load is highest both during the early phase of HIV and without treatment with antiretroviral medications. Taking antiretroviral medications every day can reduce a persons viral load to very low levels that cant be detected through testing.

In this way, antiretroviral medications arent only a treatment, but an important tool for prevention. When HIV cant be detected in the blood, a person living with HIV cant sexually transmit the virus to a partner without HIV.

This principle is called Undetectable = Untransmittable and has been supported by

up to 6 months of taking antiretroviral medications each day to achieve an undetectable viral load.

A persons viral load is said to be durably undetectable when all test results are undetectable for at least 6 months after the first undetectable result.

Theres no need to be afraid of having casual contact with someone who is living with HIV. The virus doesnt live on the skin and cant live very long outside of the body.

Additionally, bodily fluids like saliva, tears, and sweat dont transmit HIV either.

Therefore, casual contact, such as holding hands, hugging, or sitting next to someone who has HIV, wont transmit the virus. Closed-mouth kissing isnt a threat either.

These include:

• human papillomavirus infection

• syphilis
• gonorrhea
• herpes

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Strategies For Preventing The Transmission Of Hiv

Condoms made of latex provide good protection against HIV , but they are not foolproof. Oil-based lubricants should not be used because they may dissolve latex, reducing the condom’s effectiveness.

Other measures can help. For men, circumcision, an inexpensive, safe procedure, reduces the risk of becoming infected during vaginal intercourse with an infected woman by about half. Whether circumcision reduces the risk of HIV infection in other circumstances is unclear. Because circumcision provides only partial protection against HIV infection, people should also use other measures to prevent HIV infection. For example, if either partner has a sexually transmitted disease or HIV infection, it should be treated, and condoms should be used correctly and consistently.

How Does Hiv Spread

HIV can spread in different ways:

• Through unprotected sex with a person who has HIV. This is the most common way it spreads. Women may be at greater risk of being infected with HIV during sexual contact than men are. For example, vaginal tissue is fragile and can tear during sex. This can let HIV enter the body. Also, the vagina has a large surface area that can be exposed to the virus.
• Through contact with the blood of a person who has HIV
• From mother to baby during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding

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Unlikely Methods Of Transmission

The above methods account for over 99% of all known HIV transmissions. Clearly, the potential exists for HIV to be transmitted by other situations where bodily fluids are exposed. However, HIV transmission is known to be very unlikely to occur in, for example:

• Bites from insects
• Kissing
• Oral sex
• Body rubbing, etc.

It is always important to keep a sense of proportion. To help us do this, you can use some figures to roughly estimate the risks of transmission for each contact. It must be stressed that these are only estimates, and that they are drawn from studies of large numbers of people. Each human being is unique and the ability to transmit or become infected varies enormously from one individual to another.

Historical Data For Selected Countries

HIV/AIDS in World from 2001 to 2014 adult prevalence rate data from CIA World Factbook

The pandemic is not homogeneous within regions, with some countries more afflicted than others. Even at the country level, there are wide variations in infection levels between different areas. The number of people infected with HIV continues to rise in most parts of the world, despite the implementation of prevention strategies, Sub-Saharan Africa being by far the worst-affected region, with an estimated 22.9 million at the end of 2010, 68% of the global total.

South and South East Asia have an estimated 12% of the global total. The rate of new infections has fallen slightly since 2005 after a more rapid decline between 1997 and 2005. Annual AIDS deaths have been continually declining since 2005 as antiretroviral therapy has become more widely available.

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Data Extraction And Analysis

Data was extracted by one investigator and verified by another investigator . The quantitative outcomes extracted included the FNI and input parameters on 1) the epidemic setting , and 2) behavioural characteristics , for FSWs, clients, MSM, PWID and the low-risk heterosexual group. We also extracted data on transmission probabilities in the absence of STIs, the prevalence of STI among the aforementioned risk groups and the STI cofactor . Where multiple FNI estimates were presented in a study as part of a sensitivity analysis, we extracted the primary estimates and associated input parameters that were reported by the authors of the study . For each risk group, using an approach previously used elsewhere , univariate linear regression was used to explore the sources of heterogeneity across FNI estimates due to parameter inputs and due to epidemic types using the reported HIV prevalence among the low-risk group to define a dichotomous, categorical variable . For each risk group, we also used multivariate linear regression to assess whether transmission probabilities in the absence of STI, STI prevalence, and STI cofactor could help explain the heterogeneity in FNI between different countries. We present the key associations in the main results section and full results in Supplementary file. The analyses were conducted using STATA version 12.0.

Hiv Transmission Through Other Sexual Activities

HIV is also sometimes transmitted during oral sex . It may occasionally be passed from an HIV-positive person to someone sucking their penis.

“Not every act of unprotected sex with an HIV-positive person results in HIV transmission.”

Oral sex is much less risky than vaginal or anal sex, but it is not risk free. The risk depends on the viral load of the person with HIV, the dental health of the person performing oral sex and untreated sexually transmitted infections.

HIV can be transmitted by sharing sex toys such as dildos or butt plugs. They should be covered with condoms or disinfected between use by different people.

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