HIV and Drug Abuse

What are HIV and AIDS?

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is the virus that causes Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). AIDS is a disease of the immune system that has no cure. It has treatment options that can make having AIDS easier to live with but at the present time, there is no known cure. HIV is a blood-borne virus which means it is spread by blood or bodily fluids of someone who is infected comes in contact with the blood, mucous membranes, or broken skin of an uninfected person. Sharing needles or other tools used for drug use or engaging in risky sexual behaviors are the two main ways HIV is spread. Mothers with HIV can pass it to their babies during pregnancy, delivery, and breastfeeding.

HIV destroys certain cells (CD4+) in the immune system. Without these cells, the body cant fight of germs and diseases. Because of their weakened immune system, people with AIDS often develop infections of the lungs, brain, eyes, and other organs, and many suffer dangerous weight loss, diarrhea, and a type of cancer called Kaposi's sarcoma.

How Are Drug Abuse and HIV Related?

Drug abuse and addiction have been closely linked with HIV/AIDS since the beginning of the epidemic. Although injection drug use is well known in this regard, the role that non-injection drug abuse plays more generally in the spread of HIV is less recognized.

Injection drug use. People typically associate drug abuse and HIV/AIDS with injection drug use and needle sharing. When injection drug users share “equipment” (needles, syringes), HIV can be transmitted between users. Other infections, such as hepatitis C, can also be spread this way. Hepatitis C can cause liver disease and permanent liver damage.

Poor judgment and risky behavior. Drug abuse by any method can put a person at risk for contracting HIV. Drug and alcohol intoxication affect the way a person makes decisions and can lead to unsafe sexual practices, which puts them at risk for getting HIV or transmitting it to someone else.

Biological effects of drugs. Drug abuse and addiction can worsen the progression of HIV and its consequences, especially in the brain. Research has shown that HIV causes more harm to nerve cells in the brain and greater cognitive damage among people who abuse methamphetamine than among people with HIV who do not abuse drugs. In animal studies, methamphetamine has been shown to increase the amount of HIV in brain cells.

How Many People Have HIV/AIDS?

Today’s estimates indicate that more than 1 million people in the United States are living with HIV or AIDS. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that close to one-quarter of the people in the United States who are infected with HIV do not know they are infected.

You cannot tell by looking at them if someone is infected with HIV. A person can be infected with HIV for many years, and the virus may or may not progress to the disease of AIDS. A medical test is the only way to know if a person has HIV or has developed AIDS.

How Are Teens Affected?

Young people are at risk for contracting HIV and developing AIDS. According to CDC, more than 50,000 young people age 13 to 24 in the United States had been diagnosed with AIDS by the end of 2009.

How Can Teens Protect Themselves?

The best way to protect yourself is to stay healthy and think clearly. Choose not to use drugs. Know that drug use can change the way the brain functions, thereby affecting the way people make decisions and weigh risks. Another way to insure your safety and the safety of your partner is to always wear protection when you have sex.