Outcyclopedia

AIDS, (Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome)

Without doubt the single greatest health concern for the GLBT community, and probably second only to cancer as a health concern for the human race as a whole. Though originally associated primarily with gay men, this ultimately fatal condition is now known to be most prevalent among heterosexuals, especially in Africa and other third-world regions. Anyone who engages in behavior which is known to transmit HIV (primarily unprotected sexual intercourse and the sharing of hypodermic needles), the virus that causes AIDS, is at risk for the disease, regardless of sexuality, gender, age, race, nationality, or any other class or distinction. First diagnosed in 1981 and now known to have occurred in isolated cases up to fifty years earlier*, AIDS has claimed over 8 million lives worldwide, with over 23 million people worldwide believed to be HIV positive. Drugs have been developed which may delay the onset of AIDS in HIV-infected persons up to twenty years, and some promising research has been done towards developing a vaccine against HIV. However, AIDS is still a very real threat and should be taken seriously.

* Some theorize that AIDS may have been known to the ancient Egyptians, based on readings of ancient medical papyri. But this has never been substantiated. It is unlikely, since the disease would surely have spread throughout the African interior, the Levant, Mesopotamia, India, and the Mediterranean, all of whose inhabitants traded directly with Egypt and so would likely have had sexual contact with HIV-positive persons.

Links: