AIDS is a scary disease.
There is no treatment for it and we all know that at present, the only choice is controlling the symptoms of the disease before it becomes full-blown AIDS.
But unless patients start with the antiretroviral treatment there is no actual hope for controlling the disease! Let's take a closer look at the statistics! When HIV was first identified, in the year 1980, researchers were caught unaware about the potency of the virus and what it could do.
Initially sheer ignorance caused the disease to become so widespread, that at a certain time, hospitals were flooded with patients who had the disease and did not know it yet! Scientists at the National Institute of Health estimated that several million patients contracted the disease through casual sex, infected needles and of course blood transfusions.
But with the formulation of antiretroviral therapy, patients have been able to lead a much better quality of life free of the crippling stigma of the disease.
But there are problems with the treatment too! At the present time, antiretroviral medication is prescribed by a trained doctor who chooses the medicines to control and prevent the replication of the virus in the human body.
But the medications are expensive and hard to find, especially in developing countries like Africa and Asia.
The cocktail of drugs also cause severe side effects like diarrhea, vomiting, fluctuation in blood cells etc.
Another worrying concern is that with constant use over the last two decades, several people have developed resistance to the drugs which are used in the AIDS treatment regime.
For the thousands more who get infected everyday, this is not at all good news! The onus then falls on research companies and pharmaceutical labs to find newer and better medications that work.
As the research continues, it stands to reason that the medication will be expensive and do on.
Everything is not doom and gloom! I agree that it does look bad for all patients who are infected at present with the scary disease.
But it's not all that bad.
In order to assist the fight against the disease, pharmacy majors like Merck and Abbot has decreased prices on several of their most commonly used antiretroviral medications.
The US government has also stepped up with promoting the use of generic antiretroviral medication over the branded ones.
The government has stressed the fact that there is no difference in the formulation of the brand-name or the generic medication but the cost of the generic medication will be significantly lower.
Do not self prescribe! The strong range of antiretroviral medications is not something that you can prescribe for yourself for your condition.
It is very necessary that you get in touch with a doctor to find out the risks and benefits of the different therapy regimes before you start on them.
The next best thing is to find out the exact stage you are in as regarding your disease.
Please remember that individual responses to treatments vary.
Get your viral load checked every three months and change your medication regularly.
There might seem to be hope, but we can still hope for an AIDS cure can't we?
There is no treatment for it and we all know that at present, the only choice is controlling the symptoms of the disease before it becomes full-blown AIDS.
But unless patients start with the antiretroviral treatment there is no actual hope for controlling the disease! Let's take a closer look at the statistics! When HIV was first identified, in the year 1980, researchers were caught unaware about the potency of the virus and what it could do.
Initially sheer ignorance caused the disease to become so widespread, that at a certain time, hospitals were flooded with patients who had the disease and did not know it yet! Scientists at the National Institute of Health estimated that several million patients contracted the disease through casual sex, infected needles and of course blood transfusions.
But with the formulation of antiretroviral therapy, patients have been able to lead a much better quality of life free of the crippling stigma of the disease.
But there are problems with the treatment too! At the present time, antiretroviral medication is prescribed by a trained doctor who chooses the medicines to control and prevent the replication of the virus in the human body.
But the medications are expensive and hard to find, especially in developing countries like Africa and Asia.
The cocktail of drugs also cause severe side effects like diarrhea, vomiting, fluctuation in blood cells etc.
Another worrying concern is that with constant use over the last two decades, several people have developed resistance to the drugs which are used in the AIDS treatment regime.
For the thousands more who get infected everyday, this is not at all good news! The onus then falls on research companies and pharmaceutical labs to find newer and better medications that work.
As the research continues, it stands to reason that the medication will be expensive and do on.
Everything is not doom and gloom! I agree that it does look bad for all patients who are infected at present with the scary disease.
But it's not all that bad.
In order to assist the fight against the disease, pharmacy majors like Merck and Abbot has decreased prices on several of their most commonly used antiretroviral medications.
The US government has also stepped up with promoting the use of generic antiretroviral medication over the branded ones.
The government has stressed the fact that there is no difference in the formulation of the brand-name or the generic medication but the cost of the generic medication will be significantly lower.
Do not self prescribe! The strong range of antiretroviral medications is not something that you can prescribe for yourself for your condition.
It is very necessary that you get in touch with a doctor to find out the risks and benefits of the different therapy regimes before you start on them.
The next best thing is to find out the exact stage you are in as regarding your disease.
Please remember that individual responses to treatments vary.
Get your viral load checked every three months and change your medication regularly.
There might seem to be hope, but we can still hope for an AIDS cure can't we?
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