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TREATMENT
TREATING
HIV/AIDS
TREATMENT
INFORMATION
VIRAL LOAD TESTS
TREATMENT
INFORMATION
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HIV
disease is here to stay. Even if one or more of
the HIV vaccines now in development pass the rigors
of clinical trials and become available for general
use, they are unlikely to be 100% effective, to
provide sterilizing immunity, or to reach 100%
of the population -- especially in Tamil Nadu
that needs this most. Thus far, the search for
an effective vaccine has produced no truly promising
candidate, and there is little expectation, at
this point, that a universally effective preventive
vaccine will be developed in the next decade.
Although advances have been made in treatments
for HIV/AIDS, that does not mean AIDS is a manageable
disease. There is no cure. HIV/AIDS drugs can
only prolong the onset of AIDS, not prevent it.
The antiretroviral therapies that are available
can be challenging to maintain, since many of
the drugs have strict requirements that must be
followed carefully to be effective. In addition,
some drugs may cause negative side-effects.
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VIRAL
LOAD TESTS
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Physicians
use viral load testing to monitor the progress
of HIV levels in the blood and to help decide
if or when to change medications.
The
goal of treatment is to keep the blood level of
HIV at an undetectable level. However, an undetectable
level does not mean that someone is no longer
infected with HIV. HIV still remains in the body.
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DRUG COMBINATION THERAPY
What
It Can Do
What It Cannot Do
What
It Can Do
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HAART (highly active antiretroviral therapy)
is a combination of several drugs taken
to decrease the amount of HIV in a person's blood.
Antiretroviral drugs can increase the number of
years between contracting
HIV and developing AIDS, even though
they are not able to prevent the onset of AIDS.
Antiretroviral drugs can also make an HIV-positive
person feel healthier.
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What
It Cannot Do
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No drug has been discovered that cures HIV/AIDS.
Current drug therapies do not prevent the transmission
of HIV. Even if an HIV-positive person feels free
of HIV, he/she should still engage in healthy
behaviors, such as the use of condoms and clean
needles, to prevent transmitting the disease.
In some cases, drug therapies for HIV will not
always make a person feel better. An HIV-infected
person might experience side-effects, such as
nausea, headaches, weakness and diarrhea, while
on the drug treatment.
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IMPORTANCE
OF ADHERING TO DRUG THERAPY REGIMES
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Even though drug therapies can be inconvenient
(many pills must be taken at precise times throughout
the day), it is crucial to stick to the drug regimen.
Skipping a dose of the drugs may enable HIV to
mutate into a drug-resistant strain, resulting
in a worsening of the disease.
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OPPORTUNISTIC
INFECTIONS
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Opportunistic
infections are conditions that often affect people
with compromised immune systems but that are usually
fought off by normal immune systems.
Tuberculosis
(TB) is the most common cause of death for
people with HIV/AIDS throughout the world. A skin
test or a chest X-ray help to identify TB in the
body. TB infection may develop into active TB
disease, whose symptoms include severe coughing,
fever, fatigue and weight loss. TB drugs are available
but must be taken routinely to prevent drug-resistant
strains.
Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) is transmitted
through the same means as HIV, especially through
injection drug use. Therefore, many HIV-positive
people are also infected with HCV. HIV accelerates
the progression of this liver-damaging virus.
Anal and cervical cancers, which may be
caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), progress
at a greater rate in HIV-positive people. It is
imperative that HIV-positive people are examined
frequently for these cancers.
WAYS TO PREVENT OPPORTUNISTIC INFECTIONS
Keeping track of the CD4 level in an HIV-positive
person's blood helps determine whether or not
to start certain prophylaxes (preventive medications)
for diseases. Although HAART reduces the rate
of opportunistic infections, it is still important
for HIV-positive people to use prevention techniques
when infection is possible
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SIDDHA
DRUG TRIAL
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A
claim and reference stating the incidence of a
disease similar to AIDS has been made in our Siddha
texts. HIV patients at the TB Sanatorium are being
clinically treated with a combination therapy
called RAN which includes Rasagandhi mezhugu,
Amukara churanam and Nellikai elagam along with
other allopathy medications. It has been noted
that a 40-day trail with RAN has proved to suppress
the viral load and raise the immune status of
the patients for a period of upto three months.
As the results are encouraging, a number of research
proposals in this regard have been put up at the
TNSACS and are to be initiated in due course.
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