What is the Difference between HIV and AIDS
It’s been centuries, that human beings are fighting with dreaded deadly diseases. Science has not yet been able to discover any medicine that is powerful enough to kill some dreaded viruses and infections. HIV and AIDS fall into the category of those deadly diseases. Many people think they are same, well; they are not. Let’s see what they actually are.
HIV
HIV is the short form of “Human Immunodeficiency Virus”. This virus infects human immune system and with the passage of time, it damages it severely. Unlike the cold or flu viruses, the HIV virus once enters the body, it never leaves it then. The presence of HIV virus makes a person HIV-positive. Once, someone is declared HIV-positive, can never get rid of it. HIV virus attacks on white cells and over period of time, it destroys them and leaves the body prone to any disease.
AIDS
AIDS or “Acquired Immuno–Deficiency Syndrome” is the dreaded disease, which leaves a person no choice but to die miserably, no matter within a year or after years. When the white blood cell count of the body fells down to 200 (normal is 600 to 1200), he is an AIDS patient. AIDS weaken immune system so much that a person cannot save himself from dreaded diseases like, cancers, TB etc. AIDS is actually the later stage of HIV. If an HIV positive gets infected by cancer or any other opportunist disease, he is diagnosed as AIDS patient no matter his CD4 count is above 200.
HIV vs AIDS
Though both define the same thing i.e. the weakening of immune system but then both are not same. An AIDS patient is the one who catches any opportunist disease, like TB, cancer, KS, PCP, with HIV virus in his body. HIV itself cannot be called AIDS. AIDS patient has very low CD4 count up to 200 or less than 200. It may be higher than 200 but with some disease mentioned earlier. On the contrary, an HIV infected person is always positive for the presence of HIV virus in his body.
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