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WORD

Relevance to HIV/STD Prevention Education

Abstinence

See Sexual abstinence.

AIDS

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome; a collection of illnesses which signal that one's immune system has been damaged or suppressed by HIV infection.

Anonymous testing

Testing in which no name is asked or given so that no one knows the identity of the person being tested.

Antibody

A specialized protein produced by lymphocytes in response to bacteria, viruses, or other antigenic substances.

Anus

The anus can be easily bruised or injured during anal intercourse, thus providing an easy route for HIV transmission if the intercourse is unprotected.

Asymptomatic

Showing no outward sign of infection, not feeling sick.

AZT

Zidovudine, a medicine which helps the body strengthen the immune system and can improve the health of a person infected with HIV and/or living with AIDS.

Baby

An HIV infected pregnant woman can transmit HIV to her fetus before its birth and to her infant(s) during birth or in breastfeeding. Not all babies born to HIV-positive mothers will be HIV infected. When the mothers take medication, such as AZT, the virus is passed on to the baby only about 10 percent of the time.

Bisexual

Physical and romantic attraction to people of more than one gender.

Blood

Blood can transmit HIV. The Food and Drug Administration, a government organization, works with blood banks to ensure that the blood used in hospitals and other medical situations is safe.

CD4

One of two protein structures on the surface of a human cell that allows HIV to attach, enter, and thus infect the cell; CD4 molecules are present on CD4 cells (helper t-lymphocytes), which play an important role in fighting infections (foreign bodies).

CDC

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the U.S. government agency primarily tasked to respond to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States.

Clitoris

A part of the female genitalia that provides pleasure and that can be stimulated without having sexual intercourse.

Communication

Good communication is necessary in order to negotiate sexual abstinence or condom use between romantic/sexual partners.

Condom

Latex condoms, used consistently and correctly, can prevent the transmission of HIV.

Confidential testing

Testing in which people must give a name but the information is kept secret (confidential).

Death

AIDS is fatal.

Drunk

Judgment and coordination decrease when one is drunk. A drunken person may have difficulty making healthy decisions about sexual behaviors and may have difficulty in correctly using a condom.

ELISA test

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay—a commonly used test used to detect the presence or absence of HIV antibodies in the blood; a positive ELISA test result is indicative of HIV infection and must be confirmed by another, different test —a western blot.

Epidemic

The spread of an infectious disease to many people in a population or geographic area.

Erection

When the penis fills with blood and becomes hard, this is called an erection. It is time to put on a latex condom if having sexual intercourse.

Fear

People often fear people with AIDS because they don't understand how HIV is transmitted. Sometimes, fear of getting the virus may act as a positive catalyst for safer behavior; at other times it does not.

Friend

People with AIDS need friends.

HAART

Highly active anti-retroviral therapy—aggressive anti-HIV treatment, usually including a combination of protease and reverse transcriptase inhibitors, whose purpose is to reduce viral load to undetectable levels; also referred to as drug cocktails.

Helper t-lymphocytes

These cells play an important role in fighting infections by attacking and killing foreign bodies (such as bacteria and viruses) in the blood stream. See also CD4 for method by which HIV invades these cells.

Heterosexual

Physical and romantic attraction to people of the opposite gender.

HIV

Human immunodeficiency virus—the virus shown to cause AIDS.

HIV infection

Infection with the human immunodeficiency virus which may or may not make the infected person feel or be sick.

HIV negative

HIV negative (HIV-) means that a person's blood is not producing antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). A person whose blood is producing antibodies to HIV is HIV-positive (HIV+).

HIV positive

HIV-positive (HIV+) means that an individual has tested positive for HIV antibodies—white blood cells that are created by an individual's immune system because of the presence of HIV. Those not showing HIV antibodies are HIV negative (HIV-).

Homosexual

Physical and romantic attraction to people of the same gender.

Immune system

A system in the body that fights and kills bacteria, viruses, and foreign cells and which is weakened by HIV.

Infectious disease

A disease that is caused by infection; HIV is caused by infection with a virus, the human immunodeficiency virus.

Injection drug use

Taking drugs for non-medical purposes by injecting them under the skin or into a vein with a needle and syringe; using needles that have previously been used by other people can transmit HIV.

Kaposi's sarcoma

A type of cancer once commonly found only in older men and now frequently seen in people infected with HIV.

Loneliness

Lonely people sometimes engage in sexual risk-taking behavior.

Lubrication

For greater comfort during sexual intercourse, latex condoms should be used with a water-soluble lubricant, such as KY jelly. Oil-based lubricants, such as Vaseline or hand cream, should not be used with latex condoms because oil destroys latex.

Marriage

Waiting until marriage to have sexual intercourse is a value held by some people and some religions.

Masturbation

Masturbation—gentle rubbing of the genitals by oneself or with another individual (mutual masturbation)—is one way to release sexual tension without having sexual intercourse.

Nonoxynol-9

Nonoxynol-9 (N-9) is a spermicide, an agent that kills sperm. The CDC reports that in important research with commercial sex workers, N-9 did not prevent HIV transmission and may have caused more transmission of HIV. Women who used N-9 frequently had more vaginal lesions, which might have facilitated the transmission of HIV. N-9 should not be recommended as an effective means of HIV prevention.

Opportunistic conditions

Infections or cancers that normally occur only in someone who has a weakened immune system due to AIDS, cancer, chemotherapy, or immunosuppressive drugs. Kaposi's sarcoma and pneumocystis carini pneumonia are examples of an opportunistic cancer and an opportunistic infection, respectively.

Pneumocystis carini

A type of pneumonia caused by a bacterium that is present in all lungs but which can make a person very sick when she or he has a weakened immune system.

Penis

A part of the male genitalia that provides pleasure; it can be stimulated without having sexual intercourse. Males should use a latex condom over the erect penis during oral, vaginal, and/or anal intercourse.

Pill

Oral contraception ("the pill") is an effective form of birth control, but it provides no protection against HIV. Latex condoms must be used during sexual intercourse to prevent HIV/STD infection.

PLWA (PLWH)

Person living with AIDS, or person living with HIV.

Protease

An enzyme that triggers the breakdown of proteins; HIV's protease allows the virus to multiply within the body.

Protease inhibitor

A drug that binds to HIV protease and blocks it from working, preventing the production of new, functional viral particles.

Relationships

In healthy romantic relationships, both partners can communicate clearly about their needs, including their sexual desires and limits.

Respect

Having respect for one's romantic partner means listening, communicating, and trusting each other, all of which are necessary to negotiate abstinence or condom use. Having respect for oneself means saying clearly what one wants and needs.

Retrovirus

The type of virus that stores its genetic information in a single-stranded RNA molecule, instead of in double-stranded DNA; HIV is a retrovirus. After a retrovirus enters a cell, it constructs DNA versions of its genes using a special enzyme called reverse transcriptase. In this way, the retrovirus' genetic material becomes part of the cell.

Reverse transcriptase

A viral enzyme that constructs DNA from an RNA template—an essential step in the life cycle of a retrovirus such as HIV.

Safer sex

A commonly used term describing sexual practices which minimize the exchange of blood, semen, and vaginal fluids.

Semen

Semen is the fluid ejaculated by a male at orgasm. Semen carries sperm and also HIV when the male is HIV infected. Semen can transmit HIV.

Seroconversion

Development of detectable antibodies to HIV in the blood as a result of infection with HIV; it normally takes several weeks to several months for antibodies to the virus to appear after HIV transmission. When antibodies to HIV appear in the blood, a person will test positive in the standard ELISA test for HIV.

Sexual abstinence

Abstinence from sexual intercourse—at this time and/or in this relationship—is the best way to protect oneself from the sexual transmission of HIV.

Status

Whether one is or is not infected with HIV or other STDs; awareness of whether one is infected with HIV and/or other STDs.

STD

Sexually transmitted disease.

STI

Sexually transmitted infection, another commonly used acronym for STD.

Trust

Trusting that sexual partners will tell the truth about past behaviors and/or HIV/STD status may not always be safe. Trusting that sexual partners always know the truth about HIV/STD status is also not always safe.

Undetectable

Status of some PLWHs whose viral level has dropped so much that the virus is undetectable in their blood; the person is still living with HIV (like Magic Johnson, for example).

Vagina

The vagina has membranes that can absorb HIV during penile-vaginal intercourse. The vagina also secretes fluids that can transmit HIV if the woman is HIV-infected.

Victim

The word victim (as in "AIDS victim" or "innocent victim") is a word that many people with HIV/AIDS find demeaning. More acceptable terms are PLWH for Person Living with HIV and PLWA for Person Living with AIDS.

Viral load

The amount of HIV per unit of blood plasma; used as a predictor of disease progression; see also retrovirus.

Western blot

A test for detecting antibodies to HIV in the blood, it is commonly used to verify positive ELISA tests. A western blot is more reliable than the ELISA, but it is more costly and difficult to perform. All positive HIV antibody tests should be confirmed with a western blot test.