The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a sexually transmitted disease (STD), which can infect any human being on the planet. HIV is typically transmitted when blood or sexual fluids such as seminal, vaginal and anal fluids enter the bloodstream. The virus is incurable, and, in the later stages, will develop into Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).
When an individual has developed AIDS, it becomes life-threatening – organs will fail as HIV greatly weakens the body’s immunity system, slowly impairing its ability to fight off infection. HIV can thus be a scary virus to acquire as it can take a deadly toll on the body.
Thankfully, medical technology today has improved tremendously – people living with HIV can find out their status through singapore hiv testing. There are doctors who specialise in HIV and other STDs, that are based in std clinics in singapore. With medical treatment, a person living with HIV can have their lifespan extended by over 20 years.
However, this was not always the case. AIDS has taken over 35 million people’s lives, according to the World Health Organization, and there are still over 70 million people living with HIV today. To better understand the full impact the virus has caused on modern society, let us can look back at history, to the very first few cases of HIV.
The Origins of HIV – Africa
While the main AIDS epidemic happened in the early 1980s, HIV has actually been around much earlier. In fact, HIV evolved from the Simian Immunodeficiency Virus (SIV), which attacks the immune systems of monkeys and apes. The spread of the SIV from apes to humans likely occurred when African hunters ate the infected chimps, or when the chimps’ infected blood got into the cuts and wounds of hunters.
When SIV was transferred to humans, it became HIV. The global pandemic of HIV happened in 1920, when the outbreak of HIV greatly affected the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kinshasa. HIV then slowly spread across Africa, likely through migrant workers and sex trade. By the 1970s, the virus had made its way to American shores.
The AIDS Epidemic
The real scare of AIDS happened in the early 1980s, when the virus came to the public’s attention. In 1982, The New York Times published an article about a new immune system disorder, that seemed to largely affect gay men. By the time, there were already 335 reported cases, and 136 of them had already died. Officials then had called it the condition “gay-related immune deficiency” (GRID) as it seemed to only affect gay men.
The misconception that AIDS was a disease that affected homosexual men continued for many years after, as AIDS was still dubbed “the gay plague”. Because patients with the virus did not show symptoms until they developed AIDS, it was difficult to identify patients with HIV, and the development of a testing kit became the top priority for many scientists working to stop the virus.
The HIV Test & Medication
Researchers identified the cause of AIDS, the HIV virus, in 1984, and could develop a test for HIV. The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) of the United States licensed the first commercial blood test for HIV the next year. HIV testing back then worked on detecting HIV antibodies, which the body develops in their fight against the virus. Many ways of testing worked – but the primary way is through blood, as the levels of antibodies are generally higher there.
The first set of antiretroviral medication for HIV became available in 1987. The medicine works by suppressing the virus, thereby preventing them from multiplying. The body’s immune system can then recover and fight off infections. This medication is the pioneer of other medicines that were later developed that can greatly extend the quality of life of an HIV patient.
HIV Today
Today, HIV continues to affect a large number of people all over the world. Due to the fact that it is a virus that can eventually cause death, many people avoid discussing HIV altogether. However, it is important for everyone to get the facts right – as that can help greatly in the fight against HIV. If you think you may have been exposed to the virus, do contact Elyon Clinic for a rapid HIV test in Singapore.
