Mr. Baldwin's presenting
symptom of an unresolved pneumonia (Pneumocystis carinii) is not
all that unusual for the inital diagnosis of AIDS.
In the United States today,
AIDS is the leading cause of death for young men between the ages
of 25 and 44 years, and is the third leading cause of death in women of
this age group.
- This is why the CDC advocates
testing all young adults.
- About 20% don't know
they've got it.
Aids is a retroviral disease
characterized by profound immunosppression that leads to:
-
opportunistic infections
-
secondary neoplasms
-
neurological manifestations
Who gets
it? |