| The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), principally attacks T-4 lymphocytes, a vital part of the human immune system. As a result, the body’s ability to resist opportunistic viral, bacterial, fungal, protozoal, and other infection is greatly weakened. Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia is the leading cause of death among people with HIV infection, but the incidence of certain types of cancers such as B-cell lymphomas and Kaposi’s sarcoma is also increased. Neurological complications and dramatic weight loss, or “wasting,” are characteristic of endstage HIV disease (AIDS). HIV can be transmitted sexually, through contact with contaminated blood, tissue, or needles, and from mother to child during birth or breast-feeding. Full-blown symptoms of AIDS may not develop for more than 10 years after infection. |
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