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AI DS st ands for acquired immunodef iciency syndrome. AI DS is a descript ive t erm w hose
definit ion has changed several t imes already and will change in t he f ut ure as w e
cont inue t o learn more about AI DS. AI DS is caused by a virus t hat weakens t he immune
syst em. When t hat happens, people may get sick w it h inf ect ions t hat t hey ordinarily can
fight of f. Pneumocyst is pneumonia is one example, but t here are many t hings t hat can
cause illness in someone with AIDS. They re called opport unist ic inf ect ions because t he
inf ect ions t ake advant age of t he weakened immune syst em.
dont know it. A person may infect other people during this long period even though
t here may be no signs of AI DS. Fever, w eight loss, and diarrhea are somet imes present ,
but may not appear unt il lat e in t he course of HI V inf ect ion.
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1. The most common w ay t o get HI V is from sexual cont act . The virus lives in fluid
from genit als ( semen f rom t he penis and vaginal f luids) and in blood. The virus can
go from men t o women, women t o men, and ( rarely) from women t o women.
Alt hough t ransmission from man t o man by anal sex has been most common in t his
country, its now becoming common for men and women to give HIV to each other.
Thats been true in other countries for several year s. Every t ime you have
unprot ect ed sex ( wit hout a condom) w it h someone, you may be exposing yourself
t o infect ions t hat t hey could be carrying as a result of sexual cont act wit h ot her
people.
2. Anot her way of get t ing t he virus is by sharing a needle t o inj ect drugs, including
steroids. The needle has another persons blood on it and if he or she is infected,
t he virus will be in t heir blood. Some healt h care workers have got t en inf ect ed from
being st uck wit h needles cont aining inf ect ed blood.
3. A small number of people have got t en t he virus during blood t ransf usion, but blood
supplies now are screened for t he virus. Giving blood present s no risk of get t ing
HI V.
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HI V is NOT spread on t oilet seat s, by drinking out of t he same glass, by shaking hands,
or by ot her t ypes of normal daily cont act . There is no evidence t hat it can be spread
t hrough cont act during sport s act ivit ies.
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No. I t is almost impossible t o get HI V by t ouching infect ed blood. Skin is a good barrier
against HI V and t he virus does not live w ell out side t he body. Healt h care workers are at
much higher risk t han people who part icipat e in cont act sport s. Thou sands of doct ors
and nurses are exposed t o t he blood of HI V-infect ed pat ient s every day, oft en in
considerable quant it ies, but few have been infect ed. I n all know n cases of inf ect ion
among healt h care workers, inf ect ion has been acquired most commonly t hro ugh lifest yle behaviors ( sexual int ercourse or shared drug equipment ) or less commonly t hrough
accident al, skin-piercing exposure w it h blood-carrying needles or broken glass.
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Yes. Even a single cont act has some degree of risk. The risk is even great er in cert ain
sit uat ions, such as when eit her person has a sexually t ransmit t ed disease ( like
gonorrhea or syphilis) or if t he HI V-inf ect ed person is sick wit h AI DS. Having sex wit h
many part ners increases t he risk of infect ion because you increase t he chances t hat one
of t he sex part ners w ill be inf ect ed and t hey t hemselves may have mult iple sex part ners.
Lat ex condoms decrease t he risk in vaginal, oral , and anal sex. Anal sex, whet her
bet w een a man and a woman or bet ween men, increases t he risk of infect ion because
t here is a great er likelihood of t earing of skin and bleeding.
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Saf er sex is behavior t hat prevent s sexual part ners from becoming infect ed wit h HI V
virus. Not having sex is t he saf est behavior. For many people, a more realist ic approach
includes relat ionships in w hich bot h part ners are monogamous, meaning t hey do not
have sex w it h any ot her people.
I n ot her sit uat ions, for great er safet y lat ex condoms must be used during sex bet w een
men and women and between men and men. Condoms dont give 100 percent protection
but t hey help decrease t he risk of HI V t ransmission. They prot ect by being a barrier. To
be ef fect ive, t he condoms must be worn for t he ENTI RE durat ion of EVERY sexual
cont act .
Pet roleum j elly and ot her oil-based lubricant s should NOT be used because t hey increase
t he chance t hat condoms will break. Nat ural condoms, such as lambskin, are not good
barriers because t hey may have t iny holes t hrough whi ch HI V can pass.
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No, anal sex is even riskier t han vaginal int ercourse because t here is a great er likelihood
of skin t earing and bleeding.
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We dont know, but it is less risky than intercourse. Whatever the risk is, i t is present
regardless of whet her t he oral sex is from woman t o a man, f rom a man t o a woman, or
from a man t o a man.
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No. Alt hough small amount s of HI V are in saliva, saliva has been found t o inhib it t he
virus. Therefore, t he small amount of HI V t hat is in t he saliva is insuff icient t o cause
inf ect ion.
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Babies can be inf ect ed wit h HI V before or at birt h by t heir inf ect ed mot hers. About 1 in
4 babies born t o HI V-inf ect ed mot hers will get infect ed, but we cannot predict which
babies may be infected because we arent absolut ely sure how HI V is t ransferred f rom
t he mot her. We do know t hat babies CANNOT get HI V infect ion direct ly from t he f at her.
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Scient ist s t hink t hat everyone who get s HI V inf ect ion w ill event ually ge t AI DS. How ever,
because it may t ake nearly 10 years from inf ect ion wit h t he virus t o development of t he
disease, and because the epidemic has only been studied for about 10 years, we dont
have enough informat ion t o give a definit ive answer t o t his quest i on.
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There is no cure. How ever, t here are a number of current ly licensed medicines ( w hose
short ened names are AZT, DDI , and DDC) t hat slow t he progress of t he disease by
inhibit ing t he mult iplicat ion of t he virus. They have some side eff ect s.
Research cont inues, and it is possible t hat a cure or a vaccine against t he disease will
someday be found. Meanwhile, t he best def ense against t he disease is behavior t hat
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HI V inf ect ion is likely t o cause people t o die premat urely, unless somet hing else get s
t hem first ( aut o accident , et c.) . The cause of deat h is most commonly at t ribut ed t o one
or several opport unist ic inf ect ions, wit h HI V inf ect ion as t he underlying cause. Wit h early
diagnosis and early healt h care, many more people are living more t han t en years aft er
t he diagnosis of HI V inf ect ion and AI DS. Many of t hese people have no or very f ew
sympt oms.
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There is a blood t est t o det e ct antibodies (your bodys response) to the HIV. This test is
almost 100 percent reliable, except in t he first t w o t o t hree mont hs aft er inf ect ion
because it may t ake several w eeks f or your ant ibodies ( which are a sign of inf ect ion) t o
develop. By six mont hs aft er inf ect ion, virt ually everyone infect ed wit h HI V will have a
posit ive blood t est .
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I t means you have been inf ect ed wit h t he HI V and t hat you can infect ot hers by sexual
cont act or by exchanging needles cont ainin g blood. I t does not mean t hat you have
AI DS or t hat you will get sick wit h AI DS soon.
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Yes. Blood t est s are t aken in privat e. The result s are report ed back only t o t he doct or or
counselor. I n some st at es, t he t est can be report ed by number inst ead of name, so t here
is no possibilit y of ident ifying t he person.
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You should see a doct or who is experienced in t he care of HI V-posit ive people. There
are many w ays t o find such a doct or; you may t alk t o your t eam physician or you may
use the NFLs confidential toll -free number ( 1-800-527-6966) t o help you wit h t his
wit hout using your name. A doct or w it h t his expert ise will advise you on w hat measures
you should t ake t o st ay as healt hy as possible. This medical care is bet w een you and t he
doct or and w ill be kept confident ial.
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Most privat e doct ors, including many NFL t eam physicians, eit her are experienced in
dealing wit h HI V infect ion or can ref er you t o anot her doct or who is experienced. I f you
do not already have a doct or you t rust , again you may use the NFLs confidential toll free number ( 1-800-527-6966) t o help you find a doct or in your cit y wit hout using your
name, or you may wish t o call a confident ial medical service wit hin your area.
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Current NFL policies prohibit t he exclusion of any player from part icipat ing j ust because
he is HI V-inf ect ed.
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This informat ion is present ed as a service by t he Nat ional Foot ball League. I t was
adapt ed from mat erials developed by t he Johns Hopkins School of Public Healt h in
conj unct ion w it h t he Nat ional Basket ball Players Associat ion and is present ed w it h t heir
permission.
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