HIV/AIDS

Quick Facts

  • HIV is a virus that attacks the cells of your immune system and eventually leads to AIDS
  • HIV is caught and spread during childbirth, and through body fluids like semen (cum), blood and breastmilk
  • You can catch or spread HIV if you have any kind of unprotected sex
  • Use condoms - male and female - for maximum protection against HIV and other STIs
  • For up to 10 years or more, HIV may not show any signs or symptoms.
  • HIV/AIDS has no cure
  • There are treatments that can help a person living with HIV to live a long and productive life.

Currently, about the estimated number of people living with HIV in Myanmar aged 15 and above is 200,000 and new HIV infections in adults is 8,300 every year.
What is HIV?

The full meaning of “HIV” is  Human Immunodeficiency Virus. (Hmmmn big name). But what’s in a name?

  • H – Human – This particular virus can only infect human beings.
  • I – Immunodeficiency – HIV weakens your immune system by destroying important cells that fight disease and infection. Think of it like an enemy that destroys the soldiers of a Nation thereby exposing that nation to harsh attacks from many other enemies. (Get it now?) A weakened immune system can't protect you. (It’s weak, remember?)
  • V – Virus – Viruses reproduce themselves by taking over the cells in the body of its host. (Kind of like tenants forcefully hijacking the house and taking it away from the owner!) Virus don’t die and they cannot be cured. 

What is AIDS?

“AIDS” stands for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome. To understand what that means, look at the letters:

  • A – Acquired – You acquire AIDS like any other virus - most people are not born with it unless their mother was HIV positive and she transmitted it to her baby. 
  • I – Immune – Your body's immune system includes all the organs and cells that work to fight off infection or disease.
  • D – Deficiency –You get AIDS when your immune system is "deficient," or isn't working the way it should.
  • S – Syndrome – A syndrome refers to many different signs and symptoms of disease. AIDS is a syndrome,that is, it shows up in many different ways, rather than a single disease, because it is a complex illness with a wide range of complications and symptoms.