This paper provides an overview of HIV and AIDS, covering the disease mechanism, transmission routes, and the distinction between HIV infection and AIDS. It examines the determinants of health that influence disease contraction, applies the epidemiologic triangle — agent, host, and environment — to HIV, and discusses the critical role of community health nurses in prevention, case finding, and follow-up care. The paper also highlights the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as a leading national agency in HIV/AIDS surveillance, education, and resource dissemination, concluding with a reflection on the importance of prevention and ongoing disease management.
The disease examined in this report is HIV, the precursor condition for those who go on to develop AIDS. The topics covered include a description of the disease, the determinants of health and the factors that lead to its development, the epidemiologic triangle as it relates to HIV, the role of the community health nurse, and at least one national agency that directly addresses the disease by working to reduce its impact and spread. While HIV and AIDS are slowly becoming chronic, incurable, but manageable conditions through lifestyle and pharmacological interventions, there is still much work to be done. It is entirely possible to prevent — or at least reduce the risk of — HIV contraction.
One important clarification for those who may be unaware: AIDS is caused by HIV. Those who have HIV will develop AIDS and eventually die if they are not sufficiently treated. The HIV/AIDS combination works by stripping the body of its natural immune defenses. The disease eventually leaves the body unable to fight off even an influenza or common cold virus, and the patient ultimately dies from complications brought on by the immune system destruction that typifies HIV and AIDS.
More clinically, what occurs is that the CD4 count — also known as the T-cell count — is greatly reduced in someone who has HIV or AIDS. A blood test measuring the number of these cells will often reveal a count of fewer than 200 in an affected individual. The progression from HIV to AIDS typically takes some time and can actually be slowed or even halted with the right drug regimen. However, a lack of treatment is essentially a death sentence, as the immune system will eventually be destroyed. At present, approximately 1.2 million people in the United States are living with HIV. Beyond that, there are at least 50,000 new infections every year.
As for how the disease is contracted, it spreads through the interaction and exchange of certain bodily fluids in specific situations. This includes sexual activity with an infected person and sharing drug needles with an infected person. HIV and AIDS are not transmitted through common touching or hugging, the use of public bathrooms or swimming pools, the sharing of utensils, phones, or cups, or through bug bites. While less common than in the past, blood transfusions can also transmit the disease, as can transmission from a mother with HIV to her baby during birth or through breast milk.
The determinants of health as they relate to HIV are relatively straightforward. Whether a person contracts the disease comes down primarily to whether the high-risk behaviors described above are practiced and whether they involve an infected individual. Aside from an inadvertent blood transfusion, people can generally have little to no risk of contracting HIV or AIDS if they use protection during sexual activity and avoid intravenous drug use — or, at minimum, use only their own needles rather than sharing (WebMD, 2016).
The epidemiologic triangle, or triad, as it relates to HIV is composed of three components: agent, host, and environment. The agent refers to the virus itself; the host refers to a person who can contract the disease; and the environment relates to the extrinsic factors that affect the agent and the opportunity for exposure to the disease (CDC, 2016). Each component of the triad has its own distinct facets.
When it comes to the host, relevant factors include host genetics, the stage of infection, the use or absence of antiretroviral therapy, the presence of reproductive tract infections, cervical ectopy, male circumcision, contraception use, and issues of menstruation and pregnancy. Regarding the agent component of the HIV triad, relevant factors include the HIV subtype in question (which may be A, B, C, D, or E), phenotypic differences, genotypic differences, and any resistance that may exist to antiretroviral drugs. Finally, the environmental component encompasses social norms, the average rate of sex-partner change, local prevalence of or opportunity for exposure, and the social and economic determinants of risk-related behaviors — most notably sexual behavior and the use of needle-borne drugs (PAHO, 2016).
"Nursing tasks in prevention and post-infection care"
"CDC resources, data, and prevention programs"
Discover Nursing. (2016). HIV/AIDS care nurse. Discovernursing.com. Retrieved August 3, 2016, from
PAHO. (2016). Epidemiologic triad. Cursos.campusvirtualsp.org. Retrieved August 3, 2016, from
WebMD. (2016). HIV & AIDS. WebMD. Retrieved August 3, 2016, from http://www.webmd.com/hiv-aids/guide/sexual-health-aids
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