HIV

HIV; A VIRUS WITH A MIND OF ITS OWN

The Human Immunodeficiency Virus or HIV is a retrovirus that causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome [AIDS] which has terrorised the world over since its infamous inauguration in 1981. It is currently placed as the most deadliest virus claiming the lives of more than 25 million victims up to date. A third of these deaths are attributed to the Sub-Saharan Africans that are suffering from increasing poverty and decreasing economic growth. According to WHO records around 90 million people in Africa have been victimised by the virus.

 

The number of newly infected individuals with the HIV virus is said to have reduced by 16% between 2001-2008 on a global scale according to the latest records published the WHO. In 2008 around 2.7 million individuals contracted the virus with around 2 million HIV/AIDS associated death while 1.4 million HIV + pregnant women within low-middle income countries were administered anti-retroviral therapy [ART] to prevent transmission of the virus to their unborn babies. By the end of 2008, an estimated 4 million people within these regions were receiving ART treatment but with a further 5 million HIV+ patients untreated within these countries. The figure below shows the estimated prevalence of HIV amongst the world population aged 15-49 years in 2007.

The diagram below shows the statistics published by the WHO for the purpose of denoting the number of HIV cases in Sri Lankan by the end of 2005.