Information
This is the HIV and Aids Centre at the Durban University of Technology. We welcome your comments and questions. A counsellor is online to reply to your questions
If you want your comment to remain private and would like a counsellor to reply to your directly by email please just state PRIVATE REPY in your comment.
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Go to the DUT’s HIV Aids Home page to see more information.
Check out Art for Humanity and http://www.realstoriesgallery.com/hiv-prevention partnership on HIV Aids awareness and prevention.
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Frequently Used Terms in HIV and Aids, Simplified
WINDOW PERIOD: When the virus enters your body, it hides quietly as if it’s looking through a “window” trying to understand the body system in order to spot the perfect environment where it can get excited and multiply. During this time the test is negative because the antibodies are not showing and we hope that approximately three months later, we will get a true negative or positive result.
CD4 COUNT: CD4, also known as “body soldiers”. During a fight between the virus and the body soldiers, there are casualties on both sides. After we have discovered one’s positive status, it is crucial to know how many soldiers survived the fight because that number of survivors is the deciding factor for one’s treatment-whether to boost the soldiers or ARVs. The South African government has stated that CD4 of 200ul is deciding factor.
OPPORTUNISTIC INFECTIONS: These are “chance takers” as the name suggests. These infections take advantage of opportunities in the weakened (compromised) immune system. When noticing these infections, one should acknowledge the immune system has been compromised. Examples of opportunistic infections are: TB, meningitis, oral thrush, pneumonia, diarrhea, sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
ONGOING COUNSELLING: This is a follow up visit to your counselor. After being diagnosed negative or positive, it is important to discuss challenges faced now the status is known, discriminating partner, a better approach to disclose your status, need for support buddy to start ARVs, discovering that you are pregnant after being diagnosed positive, etc.
HEALTHY LIVING: As the term implies, this is an awareness of a healthy lifestyle to ensure that the immune system is strong, so preventing infections. This can be done by regular exercise, a balanced diet, safer sex, drinking at least eight glasses of water per day, avoidance of smoking and alcohol, reducing stress levels.