AIDS - Research Paper Example

Since time immemorial, microorganisms have inhabited the world and have lived in all possible natural, environmental, and biological habitats of the world. A large proportion of the microorganisms are necessary for other organisms’ survival, whereas, few are disease causing or pathogenic. Severe health enormities such as infectious diseases can result from pathogenic strains of microorganisms. Infectious diseases may include “cholera, malaria, tuberculosis, AIDS, pneumonia” and many more. According to the records, it has come into focus that the spread of these infectious diseases have increased drastically and have accelerated the death toll all around the world. All of the infectious diseases are contagious and transmittable that is, the germs causing the disease can transfer from the infected person to the uninfected person. There are several ways, which enable these germs to spread in order to transmit the disease from one person to another. Since some germs cannot live exterior to human body, the resulting diseases can only pass on through direct contact of humans, while few diseases are transmissible through different mediums such as food, water, air, or animals.
Mostly developing countries are the victims of infectious diseases as living standards of the people are lower and the hygiene conditions in such nations are not appropriate. In recent times, through medical researches it has come under identification that those diseases, which previously become extinct, are now causing infections again, the biggest example is of tuberculosis. (Lemon, 2007). Growing number of affected people is of paramount concern for medical researchers and health organizations. Although few diseases are treatable with the use of vaccines and antibiotics, yet cure for some infectious diseases have not come under findings. “AIDS – Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome is one of those diseases that are untreatable and is infecting a big faction of the world population” (Lemon, 2007). “AIDS is one of the most common Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs). It comes under origin through an agent that is a virus named Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)” (Schuitemaker & Miedema, 2000). This agent attacks and destroys the defense mechanism of human body making him incapable of fighting back the foreign agents that is other pathogens, thus suffering from a wide range of other diseases such as pneumonia, fever, dementia, weight loss, TB and many other opportunistic illnesses (Kartikeyan, 2007). In this reference, AIDS is an assortment of diseases that occurs due to damage of immune system caused by HIV infections. The virus enters those cells of the immune system that are responsible for killing the foreign particles or entities to protect human body from developing any disorder or ailment (Schuitemaker & Miedema, 2000). HIV uses its own genetic material and enzymes to take up the control of the genetic mechanisms of the human immune cells such as “DNA replication” (Schuitemaker & Miedema, 2000) and stops the cell to perform its normal function. It is not necessary that a person who is HIV positive will suffer from AIDS; many remain symptomless for long periods and some for their entire lives. These people often come under reference as ‘carriers’ (Schuitemaker & Miedema, 2000). AIDS is a global enormity that has affected people in every corner of the world. However, the extent of its effects differs from place to place and Sub Saharan African region has felt its drastic impacts the most (Joseph & Najmabadi, 2005). Some schools of thought do not agree on relating the disease with specific race, whereas, others believe that different races respond in a different manner to this disease. There are many factors, which contribute to make Sub Saharan Africa vulnerable to the disease that includes social, political, economical, and health issues. Due to severe poverty and low living standards in this region of ...Show more