As with many other viruses, HIV often causes a brief flulike illness within a few weeks of initial infection. Symptoms include fevers, headaches, muscle aches, skin rashes, loss of appetite, diarrhea, fatigue, and swollen lymph glands (Harris & Bolus, 2008; Mosack et al., 2009). These initial reactions, which represent the body’s defenses at work, tend […]

HIV has been found in the semen, blood, vaginal secretions, saliva, urine, and breast milk of infected individuals. It also can occur in any other bodily fluids that contain blood, including cerebrospinal fluid and amniotic fluid. Blood, semen, and vaginal secretions are the three bodily fluids that most consistently contain high concentra­tions of the virus […]

AIDS in Africa: Death and Hope on a Ravaged Continent To date, the vast majority of AIDS deaths have occurred in Africa, primarily in sub­Saharan nations, which contain about 10% of the global population but are home to approximately 70% of all people who are living with HIV/AIDS (Kelland, 2011). Of the millions of global […]

By January 2011 well over 1 million cumulative cases of AIDS had been reported in the United States, and almost 600,000 people had died of the disease since it was first diagnosed in 1981. The number of people in the United States living with HIV, approximately 1.2 million, continues to increase (Tasker, 2011; Torian et […]

The acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic is now recognized as the most serious disease pandemic of our time. An all-out research assault on this deadly disease, unprecedented in scope and extent, is being conducted throughout the world, and new findings are surfacing with startling rapidity. Sexually Transmitted Infections human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) The immune-system-destroying virus […]

Symptoms of first-time scabies infections may not appear for up to 2 months after the per­son has been infested by the mites (Centers for Disease Control, 2009m). Small vesicles or pimplelike bumps occur in the area where the female mite tunnels into the skin. A red rash around the primary lesion indicates the area where […]

Scabies is caused by a tortoise-shaped parasitic mite with four stubby legs called Sar — scabies coptes scabiei. Unlike pubic lice, mites are too tiny to be seen by the naked eye. Scabies An sctoparasitic infestation of tiny infestations are initiated by the female mite; after mating, she burrows beneath the skin mites- to lay […]

Ectoparasites are parasitic organisms that live on the outer skin surfaces of humans and other animals (ecto means "outer"). Two relatively common STIs are caused by ectoparasites: pubic lice and scabies. Pubic Lice Pubic lice, more commonly called crabs, belong to a group of parasitic insects called bit­ing lice. They are known technically as Phthirus […]

The most common symptom of trichomoniasis infection in women is an abundant, frothy, white or yellow-green vaginal discharge with an unpleasant odor. The discharge can irritate the tissues of the vagina and vulva, causing them to become inflamed, itchy, and sore (Centers for Disease Control, 2009k). The infection is usually limited to the vagina and […]

Trichomoniasis (trih-kuh-muh-NIE-uh-sus) is caused by a one-celled protozoan parasite called Trichomonas vaginalis. Incidence and Transmission Trichomoniasis is a common STI in both women and men. Between 7 and 8 million new cases of trichomoniasis occur each year in the United States (Centers for Disease Control, 2009k). The primary mode of transmission of this infection is […]