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Difference between HIV and AIDS

The major difference between HIV and AIDS is that the former ia virus, and the latter is a fatal disease. The presence of the retrovirus, HIV leads to the collapse of the immune system of the human body eventually leading to AIDS.

A retrovirus is a type of virus that affects the human immunity system. HIV or Human Immuno Deficiency viruses are lentivirus, which are a subset of retrovirus. Lentivirus causes very slow degeneration of the immunity system. A lentivirus is a subset of retro virus. It remains dormant for several days after it predates the human body.

The difference between HIV and AIDS is that, AIDS is a disease that occurs because of existence of HIV virus in the human body. The final stage of the HIV infection is called AIDS. . HIV is Human Immuno Virus. It is the name of the virus. While, AIDS is, Acquired Immuno Defficiency Syndrome, which is the disease.

Other differences between HIV and AIDS are mentioned below:

HIV is a virus that

  • Attacks only the human
  • Creates a deficiency in the immunity system
  • The virus cannot reproduce by itself
  • Takes over the human cell system and multiplies with the help of that.

AIDS is a disease that

  • Is acquired by external means. It is not genetically transmitted
  • Deteriorates the immunity system, due to the presence of that virus
  • One with AIDS may have to go through a wide range of diseases and opportunistic infection. Therefore, it is a syndrome.
  • It occurs long after the person actually had acquired the HIV

Therefore, the main difference between HIV and AIDS is, the HIV infected person is not considered an AIDS patient until he succumbs to the failure of the immune system of the body.. The HIV virus enters the human body through mucous membrane, blood or sexual contact . The slow paralysis of the immunity system leads to AIDS, Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome. At the final stage of HIV infection, the cd4 count drops down to below 200, and the person cannot fight the basic disease which a normal person can easily combat.

Understanding the difference between hiv and aids is very important, as improper knowledge could be hazardous. HIV positive means, a person is just diagnosed with the HIV virus. It does not mean the person has AIDS. HIV usually does not lead to AIDS until the patient starts suffering from acute immunity problems. This process takes at least 7 to 10 years. Before that, a person may mistake HIV symptoms to be usual ailments, due to their rare occurrences. Many a time, a patient only bothers to get a HIV test done at a final stage, when the frequency of occurrence of these diseases increases and the person cannot fight them. A diagnosis at this stage, however, can be too late!

Many doctors suggest getting a HIV test done, much before the acute symptoms of AIDS are apparent. An early diagnosis may enable proper antiretroviral therapy or other appropriate medications.

One should go for a HIV test, if he belongs to the following categories:

  • Homosexual
  • Multiple sex partner
  • MSM (men having sex with men)
  • Injected drug user (IDU)
  • Your partner belongs to any of the above categories
  • A child should go through a HIV test if his/her parents belong to any of the above categories.

Even if someone is diagnosed with HIV, with the help of proper medication, one may delay the time required for reaching the final stage. Therefore, one should be aware of the difference between HIV and AIDS, as HIV is not deadly in every diagnosed case.

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