AIDS_HIV+Samantha+Kotch

AIDS // HIV AIDS and HIV appeared in the early 1980's. The first cases of AIDS were found in gay men in New York and California. At this time there was no name for the virus but the men developed treatment resistant infections and cancers that were similar to each other. The discovery of HIV was made soon after these cases presented themselves. AIDS is a virus that attacks the immune system. Many people now except that HIV originates from SIV which occurs in primates. One of the common theories that people except is the disease transfered from a primate to a hunter who killed it and came in contact with its blood. And, more theories arise from the 'hunter' theory. One is that an injection was given to the hunter, the syringe was not cleaned and then given to multiple others. Another is that in labor camps, who came in contact with prostitutes, spread the disease that way. There is also a conspiracy theory that the disease was created by people to wipe out large amounts of the black and homosexual population. This theory suggest that it was spread to thousands of people throughout the world through small pox vaccines and delivered to gay men through the hepatitis B vaccine trials.



In a 1998 analysis of HIV samples HIV-1 is shown to have originated in the 1940's or 50's. Another study in 2000 suggested that the first case occurred around 1931 in west Africa. And, a 2008 study concluded that the disease first appeared between 1884 and 1924. Until recently HIV-2 wasn't studied with great detail but test suggest that HIV-2 appeared sometime in the 1940's. Given the evidence present today scientists conclude that it is highly likely that AIDS and HIV originated somewhere in Africa.

Many factors could have contributed to the spreading of HIV and AIDS. Both international and national travel contributed to the spread of the disease. Someone infected in one place could have gotten on a plane and brought it to another city, state, or country even. Blood transfusions could have also helped spread this disease, by taking blood from and infected person and giving it to someone who needed a transfusion would cause the one who originally did not have the disease to then have it. Those that used heroin also could possibly contract AIDS by using an infected syringe.