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What are the risks associated with AIDS/HIV when travelling

A little more information about the risks of travelling abroad

AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome), is the subject of so much myth and confusion that it can be hard to understand. If you’re thinking of travelling or even if you’re staying at home but would like a little more information, it’s always a good idea to have as much information as much as possible.

HIV is a mutated form of SIV (Simian Immunodeficiency Virus), this strain of the disease is found only in chimpanzees and African monkeys. AIDS in humans is caused by the HIV Virus (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), and it is so devastating because it slowly damages or kills the cells of the body’s immune system and leaves the body with little or no immunity to fight infection, disease and certain cancers. The virus doesn’t necessarily develop into AIDS straightaway, it can take up to ten years and there are various methods of treatments though a definitive cure has yet to be found.

Misconceptions

When travelling or even at home, it’s important to understand exactly how the virus is contracted to prevent infections and the unfair treatment of people who have contracted the virus

AIDS cannot be contracted through the bite of a mosquito as they inject their saliva, not the blood of the last person they bit. It is also not possible to contract HIV simply by coming into physical contact with an infected person; it can only be contracted in one of the following ways;

A blood transfusion from someone infected with the virus
Sharing needles with a drug user who has contracted HIV.
Sexual intercourse of any nature with an infected person (oral, vaginal or anal).
Inherited genetic package; if a mother is or becomes infected with the virus during her pregnancy then her child will be born with HIV.

Prevention

Prevention depends on where you’re travelling and what you’re likely to be doing. If you’re volunteering in Costa Rica working with sea turtles you’ll be at very low risk, but if you’re working in a community with those directly affected by AIDS in rural Africa your risk significantly increases. The best methods of prevention are avoiding the basic main means of contraction;

If you fall ill on your travels and require a blood transfusion, it’s best to come home. It might but your trip short but it’s a good preventative method.
Avoid injections and the use of any hypodermic needles abroad, especially of drugs (you shouldn’t be doing that anyway!) It may be wise to avoid any kind of piercing or tattooing; not too spoil your fun but it’s not always guaranteed that the needle will have been cleaned so there is a risk of infection.
Don’t have unprotected sex. Not only are you risking a number of sexually transmitted diseases and a definite chance of contracting HIV if your partner has it, there’s the risk of pregnancy too. Be sure both you and your partner have been tested and that neither they nor you have had unprotected sex with anyone else.
If you’re in a high risk area take personal hygiene and safety very seriously; if you cut your finger and come into contact with the bodily fluids (blood) of a someone infected with the virus it is possible that you could contract it.

High risk countries

Due to the means of the Virus’s infection it can be easily spread and is found all over the world. The main areas of high risk are those where awareness and health cannot be given enough attention and consequently the virus has spread in far denser numbers, however, the virus is present in Europe and the USA. Although the West has more resources for treatment and prevention than in areas of Africa, Latin America, and South East Asia, for example; Guinea, Brazil and Bangladesh, there are many charities and volunteer projects working to improve the situation.

Treatments

Should you become infected with the HIV virus whilst travelling there are options open to you, the first will be to go home and consult your doctor as to which treatment you would like to proceed with. Although, there isn’t a definitive cure, there are several methods of treatment that can work to fight against the illness, treating it as a long term chronic disease and minimising some of its effects. Some of the available forms of medication are;

Reverse Transcriptase (RT) inhibitors keep the virus from reproducing by interfering with a critical step of the HIV life cycle.
Protease inhibitors help to prevent the production of infectious particles by interfering with a protein that HIV produce them.
Fusion inhibitors block the virus from entering the body's cells.

It’s important the Virus is identified and caught early so be very cautious when travelling abroad and have regular blood testes if you feel you may be at risk.

http://www.aids.gov/treatment/overview/index.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/

http://www.traveldoctoronline.net/diseases/hiv.htm

http://www.aidsinfo.nih.gov/