Medical Blog

AIDS and HIV:

The Disease

HIV and AIDS are deadly diseases. AIDS is a growing epidemic, and more attention should be called to the effects it has on a person mentally and physically.

AIDS and HIV literally destroys your body cell by cell. HIV is intercepted when body fluids are exchanged. The virus then travels in the blood stream looking for helper T cells, the directors of the immune system, to invade. The virus doesn’t choose a cell randomly. It has to find a cell that fits it’s receptor snugly. When the cell is found, it is given a chemical signal to produce new viruses. These new viruses go through the same process, and the HIV multiplies rapidly. This is one reason HIV is so deadly. Read more…

HIV Western Blot

This is a test that detects the presence of antibodies, which are chemicals produced by the body to fight germs and other foreign substances. In particular, the test detects antibodies to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) which causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, or AIDS.
How is the test performed? Read more…