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HIV invades helper T cells, which then begin to produce HIV soon after their infected. As helper T cells die, the immune system gradually weakens and becomes overwhelmed by pathogens that it would normally detect and destroy.

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14y ago
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14y ago

HIV attacks your immune system making it really easy for little infections to become deadly. There body is defenceless therefore contracting many infections.

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13y ago

That is simply the nature of the HIV virus. Because HIV destroys the immune system, infections are common. The body cannot fight off the infections because the immune system is disabled.

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10y ago

Their immune systems are not very good at fighting off any infections.

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Q: Why do people with AIDS fall victim to opportunistic infections?
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What is the term for infectious diseases associated with AIDS?

opportunistic infections


What is involved in the neurological complications of AIDS?

Opportunistic infections of the brain such as progressive multifocal leucoencephalopathy (PML) and meningitis, other opportunistic infections such as herpes zoster (shingles ), peripheral neuropathy , depression , and AIDS-related dementia.


Which state marks the transition from HIV to AIDS?

The development of opportunistic infections marks the transition from HIV to AIDS.


What infection is bad for a person with AIDS but does not harm a healthy one?

These infections are called "opportunistic infections." They are called opportunistic because a weakened immune system is necessary for them to cause serious infection.


Aids is said to develop when?

The specific opportunistic infections that AIDS patients develop depend in part on the prevalence of these infections in the geographic area in which the patient lives. See related link.


Is Kaposi sarcoma linked to some aids in patients?

KS is considered an opportunistic infection. People with healthy, fully-functioning immune systems are not at risk for developing this kind of cancer. Opportunistic infections occur in AIDS patients due to the level of immune suppression that happens when someone is infected with HIV. However, opportunistic infections also happen among people who suffer from other health issues that affect the immune system like lupus.


What causes the onset of aids?

The progressive decrease in immune function leads to the onset of AIDS. AIDS is diagnosed at a certain cell count or when certain opportunistic infections are diagnosed.


Does it burn when you go to the toilet if you have aids?

AIDS can produce a wide variety of symptoms because of the opportunistic infections that can result, however, the particular symptom that you describe would be more typical of gonorrhea or other urogenital infections than of AIDS.


What does AIDS-OI mean?

OI= Opportunistic Infection. It is a term that describes a number of different infections, or symptoms that can occur while the immune system weakend by the AIDS virus.


What can a doctor do to help a patient who has aids?

A person with AIDS is treated with antiviral drugs to control the viral infection. In addition, they require treatment or preventive medication for opportunistic infections.


What disease does HIV bring?

HIV infection will bring in the dreaded syndrome called as AIDS. It may take up to eight years to develop the AIDS. If you are on proper therapy, the duration to develop the AIDS is prolonged to many years. In case of AIDS, you immunity is suppressed. You get infections by opportunistic infections.


What is susceptibility to opportunistic infections are a symptom of?

AIDS stands for acquired immune deficiency syndrome and is characterized by destruction of a component of the immune system called helper T cells (or CD4 cells). This inhibits the functioning of the entire immune system and makes one more susceptible to opportunistic infections or infections that people with normally functioning immune systems seldom succumb to.