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AIDS/HIV Care
HIV - What You Need to KnowAwareness could make all the difference for you or someone you care about
HIV and Hepatitis C“Hepatitis C is a major health concern, infecting about 30,000 Americans each year,” says infectious disease specialist Timothy Friel, M.D. Like HIV, the liver-damaging disease is spread through blood, so many people are infected with both viruses.Since many people with hepatitis C have no symptoms, some who have the disease don’t realize it. Liver damage—which can lead to cancer, liver failure or cirrhosis—typically isn’t discovered until years later. There is no vaccine for hepatitis C, but you can prevent it the same way you prevent AIDS. “It’s important to be tested if you think you may have been exposed,” Friel says. Of the 1 million Americans living with HIV, 25 percent don’t know they have it. Even if you’re not exposed to HIV personally, it’s vital to have knowledge about this AIDS-causing virus. In the United States, 1 million people live with HIV, and there are 40,000 new cases each year. “The disease can infect anyone, no matter his or her race, income or sexual preference, and there is still no cure,” says infectious disease specialist Timothy Friel, M.D., of Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network. Check your knowledge with this true-and-false quiz. True or False: You can’t get HIV through heterosexual sex.False. HIV can be spread through any sexual contact. “The bottom line is, anyone who’s had unprotected sex should be tested,” Friel says. While homosexual sex remains the leading cause of infection in the United States, more than 90 percent of HIV cases in adults and adolescents worldwide are the result of heterosexual contact.HIV also can be spread through blood, commonly on needles shared to inject drugs or steroids, or for tattoos or piercing. It can’t be passed by hugging, kissing or donating blood; sharing food, telephones, toilet seats or eating utensils; or through tears, saliva, sweat, urine or insects like mosquitoes. True or False: Condoms are 100 percent effective in preventing HIV infection.False. “Condoms dramatically reduce the risk for infection when used consistently and correctly, but they’re not foolproof,” Friel says. “The surest way to avoid getting HIV through sex is abstinence or having a mutually monogamous relationship with a partner who tests negative.”True or False: Pregnant women with HIV can infect their babies.TRUE. There is a 1-in-4 chance a pregnant woman with HIV will infect her child during delivery. That’s why all pregnant women are offered an HIV test. If a woman tests positive, HIV medicationsgreatly reduce the risk for infection. In some women, Cesarean (surgical) delivery further reduces risk. “Thanks to routine testing, mother-to-child infection is much less common today,” Friel says. HIV-positive mothers also can infect their babies through breast milk, so it’s recommended they don’t breastfeed. True or False: HIV testing is painful and the results take a long time.False. The new Ora-Quick Advance test at Lehigh Valley Hospital only requires a gum swab, not a blood withdrawal, and you get the results within 20 minutes. It’s free and confidential, and no appointment is needed. Call 610-402-CARE for more information.Want to Know More about HIV, including its impact during pregnancy? Visit Lehigh Valley Hospital’s AIDS Activities Office Web site at www.lvh.org/aids. This page last updated 2/12/08 04:08 PM
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