Archive for the 'HIV / AIDS' Category

Going under a plastic surgeon’s knife could soon be a thing of the past for women who would like a bigger bust line.

Instead they could avail of the results of a study that shows that stem cells could be implanted successfully into the chest.

Currently all efforts in this area are concentrating on those who have had mastectomy after contracting breast cancer. Hopefully it will offer these women another option, other than implants for trying to get their lives back on track.

Similar techniques have been used very successfully in Japan where it has followed the same path. In the UK, Professor Kefah Mokbel is soon to start a trial of ten of his patients and is excited about these advances in breast surgery.

Although the treatment may not create the massive increase that some women might prefer, the procedure is much more natural and likely to be permanent rather than having to be redone after a period of time.

Mokbel says that an implant is an alien object to the body and there are many drawbacks including leakage and adverse reactions.

Each year thousands of women worldwide are infected with the HIV virus, this is particularly true amongst black women between the ages 19 to 35, who do not understand the importance of protecting themselves during a sexual relationship with their male partners.

In March, there will be a national day dedicated to HIV and AIDS alertness, organised throughout the U.S. in order to bring more information to all those women who still do not understand how important it is to protect themselves from the virus.

During the National Women and Girls Awareness Day, there will be the possibility to have HIV screening tests and collect as much information on the virus as possible.

It is essential that all women abstain from unsafe sex or use a condom every time they have sex with a partner they do not know well enough.

Unfortunately there are also cases of regular partners who in turn have unsafe sex with other infected people, thus spreading the virus to those who do take precautions; this is why one must be tested regularly.

These tests available to all women will help them find out if they are infected, and if so they may be treated at an early stage and be helped to keep healthy.

A recent study on products that can protect women from contracting HIV has finally achieved a breakthrough with PRO 2000. This vaginal gel has been tested and has revealed its effectiveness against HIV infection in 36% of cases.

Although this study is not yet definite it is extremely promising, for no other products tested had ever given such positive results.

However this research sponsored by the NIH has still to confirm the effectiveness of PRO 2000, it will be up to a more extended test, which is being carried out on 9,400 African women.

The research involved 3,000 women with a dynamic sex life from African countries and the U.S.; four separate groups used diverse gel products to determine the different level of effectiveness against HIV infection.

Amongst those women who used PRO 2000, 36 were infected by HIV, while 54 of those using BufferGel and 51 using placebo contracted the disease. 53 women who used no gel at all were infected by HIV.

During the research the women were given preservatives and were advised to use them in addition to the protective gels, though many amongst those using the gel admitted they had not done so.

Women having unsafe sex may be at more risk of HIV than thought after tests revealed the HPV virus could breach even healthy vaginal tissue.

It had been believed that only damaged skin inside the vagina could provide a route to infection.

However, US-based researchers say HIV infection can get past this intact barrier within hours.

UK HIV charities said it reinforced the need for women to avoid unprotected sex unless their partner’s health is known.

The lining of the vagina - the squamous epithelium - had been believed by many to be capable of keeping HIV at bay.

While transmission of the virus from men to women through unprotected sex is commonplace in many parts of the world, it was thought that HIV was most likely traveling through cuts or sores in the vaginal tract (vaginal problems), or penetrating a much thinner layer of skin further up the reproductive tract.

The scientists from Northwestern University in Chicago found that, far from this being the truth, HIV could move quickly between the skin cells themselves.

Read more at BBC News

Many of you might be aware of HIV, human immune deficiency virus, which is very dangerous and can lead to acute immune deficiency virus (AIDS).

HIV infection is transmitted mainly through sexual contacts.

It is a viral infection, which gradually damages your body immunity.

HIV infection mainly destroys the cells of your immune system and decreases your body’s ability to fight against the diseases which are caused due to fungal, viral and bacterial infections.

This dreadful infection can also make your body more prone to certain types of cancers and opportunistic to certain infections which your body would normally resist.

What are the other adverse effects of HIV infection?

HIV infection can also lead you to several other harmful diseases like lung cancer, heart attack and also tuberculosis. Recent studies have proved that people infected with HIV face nearly twice the risk of heart attack when compared with non infected patients.

Tuberculosis and HIV:

Tuberculosis (TB) is the most common infection associated with HIV and causing death to several AIDS infected people. Having HIV, you are more susceptible to get infected with TB.

As it is difficult for a person to determine the presence of HIV virus in the body, the only possible way to confirm HIV is to get HIV/AIDS test.

AIDS test kit is an essential tool in the detection of AIDS, a disease that restrict the body’s ability to resist the infection.

With AIDS test, one can surely confirm the presence of HIV virus in the blood. If present, there is medical care to help out right away.

An AIDS test can be done at any medical center. Today, all medical centers (local, state and federal) are providing free HIV/AIDS test.

AIDS Test - Home Test Kit:

Today, the AIDS test can be done anonymously at home using AIDS test kit. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved HIV/AIDS home test. The AIDS home test is very safe, effective and accurate. It is more than 99% accurate in determining the HIV virus beyond six months after an exposure.

The Aids home tests are as accurate as the antibody tests and ELISA/Western Blot/IFA tests administered by doctors, hospitals and health clinics. Besides being speedy and convenient, the usage of AIDS test kit at home is very easy.

AIDS, stands for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, is a dangerous viral infection, which has no cure or treatment.

Prevention is the only way to get rid of this viral infection.

AIDS testing is a simple process in which you are advised to give a blood sample for the test. This process of testing for AIDS is some times known as AIDS serology.

The main aim of AIDS testing is to evaluate the presence of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) in your immune system. It is also used to know the effect of this virus on the immune system of your body.

Serology is one of the branches of immunology which mainly deals with the characteristics and contents of blood serum.

AIDS testing is mandatory for these specific people:

Pregnant women: If you are pregnant, then it is very important for you to get tested for AIDS. There is a chance for the transmission of the virus from you to your unborn baby.

If it is detected in the initial stages, it can be prevented and you can protect your baby from the dreadful virus. Perinatal HIV transmission is mainly due to lack of voluntary counseling of AIDS during pregnancy.

HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus. It is a sexually transmitted disease that is caused by RNA retroviruses: HIV-1 and HIV-2.

It is also known as silent infection because the HIV Symptoms are asymptomatic in the initial stages (also known as latent phase).

Sexually transmitted diseases are the diseases that can spread easily through a sexual intercourse with an infected person, from mother to child during pregnancy and during breast-feeding.

The other sexually transmitted diseases are gonorrhea, genital warts, syphilis, and pelvic inflammatory diseases.

It is found that, in the United States, approximately forty thousand new HIV infection cases develop yearly and about half of the adults suffering with HIV virus are women.

When you first get infected with HIV virus, it initially affects the T-Cell (a type of white blood cell) and multiplies the T-cells to produce several copies of it. Thus, the virus can spread easily.

In this initial stage of infection, you may develop no or very few HIV symptoms. So, if you develop early HIV symptoms then it occurs within six to twelve weeks after you get infected with HIV virus.