Date of Award

2019

Document Type

Restricted Access Thesis

Degree Name

MS in Physician Assistant Studies (PA)

Department

Physician Assistant Studies

First Advisor

Amanda Perkins

Abstract

The first documented case of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) was in 1959 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, since then over 70 million people worldwide have been infected with HIV. The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus that is spread via blood and bodily fluids leading to a state of host immunosuppression and eventual death. HIV and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) are a spectrum of the same disease process. What begins as HIV, eventually progresses to AIDS; this distinction is made when there is an opportunistic infection or the CD4 cell count falls below 200 cells/mm3. As of 2017, there were 36.9 million individuals living with HIV/AIDs in the world2; it is estimated that 1.8 million people who reside in Latin America are infected with HIV. The mortality of HIV/AIDS has declined in recent years due to advancements in treatments, however, death rates are still high. A staggering 940,000 people world-wide lost their lives to this disease in 20172, with 37,000 of those occurring in Latin America.

Identifier

SC 11.PAS.2019.Zurakows.L

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