The Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is one of the most formidable public health and medical challenges evolving through the past decades. The syndrome is inextricably linked to the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), a viral infection that leads to a gradual depletion of cells playing a vital role in the immune system, notably the helper T cells as well as macrophages and dendritic cells.¹ This cascade of events progresses to opportunistic life- threatening infections and a compromised immune system, a characteristic feature of AIDS. (prevalence fig). AIDS is transmitted through multiple methods that relate to intimate contact with other individuals. These methods include sexual intercourse and sharing of intravenous drug needles. The method that was found to be the most common in China was sexual contact. A survey conducted in 2020 showed that sexual transmission was responsible for 97.5% of new HIV infections. Out of this, male homosexual intercourse accounted for 23.3% while heterosexual intercourse accounted for 74.2%.² Other methods of transmission can include artificial insemination, skin grafts, organ transplants and the reuse of equipment that was previously used to inject an HIV positive person. HIV can also be transmitted from a breastfeeding mother to her child as well as during pregnancy and birth. Healthcare providers that are treating an HIV positive patient are also at risk of getting infected. It is a low risk, measuring up to less than 1% due to limited exposure to the blood of the patient. This risk is present only when the parenteral or mucous membrane of the healthcare worker is exposed to the virus.³

A study conducted on 153 members of the general public in China used an HIV/AIDS Self-reported Symptom Checklist (HSSC) including 27 common symptoms of the illness to gauge their severity. These symptoms were arranged into 5 cluster categories followed by 7 individual symptoms. The 5 symptom clusters included cognitive function, wasting syndrome, dizziness or headache, skin-muscle-joint disorder and changes in mood. 7 individual symptoms listed are difficulty in sleep, fatigue, hair loss, low libido, blurred vision, coughing and lipodystrophy. Out of the participants of this survey, 60.13% presented as asymptomatic. In the remaining 39.87% that presented with symptoms, further distinctions were made. A majority, 47.54%, only experienced 1 symptom while 18.03% suffered from 2 symptoms. There were even some participants that presented with more than 3 symptoms. Female patients of HIV can present with a separate variety of gynecological symptoms. These include irregularity in the menstrual cycle, amenorrhea, vaginitis and ovarian polycystosis. The most common symptoms can be listed according to their percentage. Vaginal discharge (25.49%), irregular period (18.95%), painful cramps (13.07%), vaginal odor (11.11%) and vaginal itching (10.46%). It has also been found that women that are HIV positive will experience different symptoms of menopause than those who test negative. This is due to lower levels of the anti mullerian hormone.⁵

AIDS can be successfully managed and treated by lifelong administration of combination antiretroviral therapy, which includes oral pre-exposure prophylaxis using oral antiretroviral (ARV) drugs.^6,7

In addition to this, there are several other prevention strategies such as use of condom during intercourse, limiting the number of sexual partners, regular nucleic acid testing (NAT) and avoiding sharing injection drug equipment such as needles or syringes. However, an effective vaccine is still required to eradicate the HIV epidemic. The recent vaccine measures involve the induction of neutralizing antibodies that result in long- term disease-free and transmission-free HIV control.⁸