About HIV & AIDS

HIV is one of the most thoroughly studied infections in the history of medicine. Thanks to four decades of research, a person living with HIV who is on treatment today can expect a long, healthy life — and will not pass the virus on. This page explains, step by step, what HIV is, how it works, and what it means for everyday life.

What is HIV?

HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus. It is a virus that attacks the immune system — the body's natural defence against disease. Specifically, HIV infects a type of white blood cell called CD4 cells (or T-helper cells), which coordinate the immune response. The virus uses these cells to multiply, destroying them in the process.

Without treatment, the number of CD4 cells gradually falls, and the body becomes increasingly vulnerable to infections and certain cancers that a healthy immune system would easily fight off.

What is the difference between HIV and AIDS?

The two terms are not the same:

• HIV is the virus itself — the infection.
• AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is the most advanced stage of HIV infection, when the immune system is so weakened that serious illnesses, called "opportunistic infections", appear.

The key message: with modern treatment, most people with HIV never progress to AIDS. Early diagnosis and treatment halt the progression of the disease.

How the infection progresses without treatment

Untreated infection generally moves through three stages:

• Acute infection — 2–4 weeks after acquiring the virus, many people develop flu-like symptoms (fever, swollen glands, sore throat). During this period the viral load is very high and the risk of transmission is greatest.
• Chronic (latent) phase — the virus stays active but multiplies slowly. This can last many years without symptoms. The person feels healthy but can still transmit the virus.
• AIDS — without treatment, the immune system fails and opportunistic infections appear.

How HIV is transmitted

HIV is found in certain body fluids: blood, semen, vaginal and rectal fluids, and breast milk. Transmission happens when one of these fluids enters another person's bloodstream, through:

• Unprotected sex — vaginal, anal or, less commonly, oral, with a person who has HIV;
• Infected blood — especially through sharing needles and syringes;
• From mother to child — during pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding (transmission that can be almost entirely prevented with treatment).

How HIV is NOT transmitted

This is where most unfounded fears arise. HIV is not spread through ordinary, everyday contact:

• Hugging, kissing, shaking hands, touching;
• Coughing or sneezing, through the air;
• Sharing dishes, cutlery, toilets, showers or swimming pools;
• Mosquito or other insect bites;
• Tears, sweat or saliva (under normal conditions).

Living, working or studying alongside a person with HIV carries no risk whatsoever. Stigma based on false information does more harm than the virus itself.

U=U: Undetectable = Untransmittable

One of the most important discoveries of recent years is the U=U principle. A person with HIV who takes their treatment correctly reaches an undetectable viral load — the amount of virus in the blood becomes so low that tests cannot measure it. Large studies have proven that such a person cannot transmit HIV sexually.

U=U changes everything: it means treatment is also prevention, and that a person with HIV can have relationships and children without fear of passing on the virus.

Common myths

• *"HIV is a death sentence."* — False. With treatment, life expectancy is close to that of the general population.
• *"I can tell if someone has HIV."* — False. HIV has no visible signs; the only way to know is testing.
• *"If we both have HIV, protection no longer matters."* — False. Protection still matters to avoid other sexually transmitted infections.

What you can do now

• Get informed from trusted sources (see Resources);
• Get tested — free and confidential;
• Learn about prevention methods, including PrEP and condoms.