THT Cymru in Swansea

Open 10am-5pm Mon - Fri
Tel: 01972 477 540
Fax: 01792 477 540
Email: joseph.chambers@tht.org.uk

Services include:

• Health Promotion
• Training
• Information
• Counselling
• Newly Diagnosed Support
• LGBT Youth Group

THT is the leading HIV & AIDS charity in the UK and the largest in Europe. It was one of the first charities to be set up in response to the HIV epidemic and has been at the forefront of the fight against HIV & AIDS ever since. Click here to visit the Terrence Higgins Trust Web Site

HIV is short for Human Immunodeficiency Virus. HIV attacks the body's immune system, making it hard to fight off infections. HIV particularly attacks the white blood cells called CD4 cells, which sets the immune system in motion when infections enter the body. HIV infects CD4 cells and uses them to make new copies of HIV which go on to infect more cells. The lower a person's CD4 count, the weaker their immune system will be.

What is AIDS?

AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. When a person's immune system has been damaged he or she is open to other illnesses, especially infections (e.g. tuberculosis and pneumonia) and cancers, many of which would not normally be a threat. Before effective treatments, if someone with HIV got one of these illnesses the person was said to have AIDS. However, it is no longer a widely-used term. Doctors may instead call this 'late stage' or 'advanced HIV infection'.

How is HIV passed on?

For someone to become infected, a sufficient amount of HIV must get into their blood. The body fluids which contain enough HIV to infect someone are blood, semen, vaginal fluids including menstrual blood, and breast milk.

Saliva, sweat and urine do NOT contain enough virus to infect someone. HIV CANNOT pass through intact external skin, or through the air like a cold or flu virus.

The main routes of transmission in the UK are:

• Through sex without a condom - HIV can pass from one person to another through unprotected anal or vaginal sex.
  There is only a small risk of transmission through oral sex.
• Through injecting drug use - HIV can be passed on by using needles or syringes that someone with HIV has already used.
• From mother to baby - a pregnant woman may transmit the virus to her baby before or during birth, or HIV can be passed on during breastfeeding.

Through organ transplant, blood transfusion or blood products - before it was known that donated blood might contain HIV, many people with haemophilia became infected through receiving contaminated blood products. However since 1985, all blood and tissue donations in the UK have been screened for HIV and all blood products are now treated to destroy any HIV which may be present.

How does the HIV test work?
The most commonly used test is an HIV antibody test. Antibodies are produced by the body in response to the presence of HIV, and this test looks for those antibodies.

What is the window period?
When someone becomes infected with HIV, it can take up to three months for their immune system to produce enough antibodies to show up on an HIV test (although in a few cases it can take up to six months) - this gap is known as the window period or seroconversion. Because the HIV test looks for antibodies, taking an HIV test less than three months after possibly getting infected might not give an accurate result. However, throughout the window period, the infected person has enough virus in the blood, breast milk or sexual fluids to infect another person even though it won't show on a test.

Can you treat HIV?
There is no vaccine or cure for HIV. However, anti-HIV drugs are available, and taking a combination of anti-HIV drugs (combination therapy) can slow down the damaging effect of HIV on the immune system. When combination therapy is successful, it can improve the health of someone with HIV, making them less likely to develop what used to be called 'AIDS-defining conditions' and prolonging their life expectancy. In order for the anti-HIV drugs to be most effective a certain level has to be maintained in the body at all times. However, taking anti-HIV drugs can be complicated. Some people have take a large number of pills every day with restrictions about when they have to be taken and with dietary instructions which can make it very difficult to stick to. Some of the treatments have side effects as well.

The real problems
Anti-HIV treatments have drastically improved the health of people living with HIV, but living with the virus can be stressful and difficult. Living with a potentially life-threatening infection, and knowing you could pass it on to someone else can be very difficult. Misunderstandings and fears about HIV are still widespread in society. People living with HIV may face hostility or rejection from society, some have lost jobs and homes and children have been banned from schools due to their HIV status.

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