HIV/AIDS

Estimated number of new cases each year in the U.S.: 40,000
Statistics: About 1 in 250 college students test positive for HIV. Approximately 90% of young people infected with HIV do not know it.
Caused by: AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome) is caused by HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus)
Symptoms: None, possibly for 10 years. Or, some people experience flu-like feelings that don't go away and sudden and unexplained weight loss.
Transmission: Spread by:
  • Vaginal, anal, or oral sex with an infected person
  • Sharing needles with an infected person
  • Intimate contact/exchange with infected blood
  • From mother to child during birth or breast milk
Treatment: No cure. Newer medications enable people living with HIV and AIDS to live longer, healthier lives, but there is still no cure.
If Untreated: Causes weakened immune system, death.
Risk Reduction:
  • Use latex barriers correctly every time you have sex.
  • Limit the number of sex partners, and do not go back and forth between partners.
  • Practice sexual abstinence, or limit sexual contact to one partner you know is not infected.
  • Do not share needles.
  • If you think you are infected, avoid sexual contact and see a health care provider.

Source for information on this page: CDC Division of STD Prevention http://www.cdc.gov/nchstp/dstd/dstdp.html

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