If you are sexually active, you should know your HIV status

Although it no longer makes big headlines like it did in the 1980s, HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) still poses a significant health risk.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 38 million people are living with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome).

It is important to get tested and know your HIV status so you can choose options to stay healthy.

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Mayo Clinic infectious disease specialist Dr. Stacey Rizza says people should take the virus more seriously.

“I want people to know that it is still widespread in society,” she says.

According to Dr. Rizza, HIV attacks and weakens the immune system.

It destroys a type of white blood cell called CD4, which protects against infections.

She says that in the early stages of the disease, most people often don’t know they have it.

“It can lie latent in the body for many, many, many years, and that’s why HIV is so difficult to cure,” she explains.

If you are HIV positive and do not know your status, you can unknowingly spread the virus to others through sexual contact or sharing needles.

Dr. Rizza says HIV prevention includes using barrier protection such as condoms, dental dams and female condoms, as well as using clean needles.

By taking an HIV test you can detect the virus early and knowing your status can help you prevent infecting others.

“I would like to see more people in society get tested for HIV and then connect those who are infected with it to the appropriate treatment so that we can take care of them and enable them to live long, healthy lives,” she says.

HIV can be diagnosed through blood or saliva tests, such as:

• Antibody tests: These tests look for antibodies that the immune system produces in response to HIV infection.
• Combination tests: These tests look for HIV antibodies and antigens (proteins produced by the virus).
• Nucleic acid tests: These tests look for the virus’s genetic material in the blood.
• Home test kits: These are HIV tests that can be done at home using a saliva or blood sample. – By Sonya Goins/Mayo Clinic News Network/Tribune News Service