How do HIV and AIDS differ?

Answer 1

HIV is a virus, specifically the Human Immunodeficiency Virus, that is the precursor to AIDS or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. While AIDS has a host of symptoms that range from chronic pain to the possibility of oppurtunistic infections, HIV is relatively calm in its presentation. It presents much like the flu and then stays latent until it is activated (no one is really sure what triggers it) and then AIDS appears and ravages the body.

Answer 2

Actually .. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.

H - Human: because this virus can only infect human beings. I - Immuno-deficiency: because the effect of the virus is to create a deficiency, a failure to work properly, within the body's immune system. V - Virus: because this organism is a virus, which means one of its characteristics is that it is incapable of reproducing by itself. It reproduces by taking over the machinery of the human cell. A - Acquired: because it's a condition one must acquire or get infected with; not something transmitted through the genes I - Immune: because it affects the body's immune system, the part of the body which usually works to fight off germs such as bacteria and viruses D - Deficiency: because it makes the immune system deficient (makes it not work properly) S - Syndrome: because someone with AIDS may experience a wide range of different diseases and opportunistic infections.

Answer 3

HIV is a virus. AIDS is the medical condition that occurs as a result of being infected with the HIV virus.

Typically, people can live for years just being infected with the HIV virus. Many show no signs or symptoms of illness and we refer to that stage of the infection as the asymptomatic period.

AIDS happens when the HIV virus has sufficiently damaged the immune system and the body begins to have difficulty fighting off infection.

There are medical criteria that must be met in order for an individual to be classified as having AIDS. They include a high viral load, a low CD4 count and the presence of opportunistic infections.