More than 800 students in Tripura are HIV positive… See how AIDS is becoming more dangerous in the country!

Cases of HIV-AIDS are increasing continuously in Tripura. The shocking news is that more than 800 students have been found HIV positive here. Many have even died.

An official of the AIDS Control Society of Tripura said that recently 828 students were found infected with HIV while 47 students have died of AIDS. Officials said that five to seven new patients are coming up every day in Tripura. However, the Health Ministry of Tripura has clarified that the figures of 828 cases and 47 deaths being given are from April 2007 to May 2024.

The official said that if another student uses the injection needle used by an HIV infected student, then the infection spreads to him as well. The major reason for the spread of HIV among students is the consumption of drugs through injection. These cases of HIV have been reported in 220 schools and 24 colleges-universities of Tripura.

Subhrajit Bhattacharjee, Joint Director of AIDS Control Society, said that most of the students who have been infected with HIV come from affluent families. Both their parents are in government jobs and they do not hesitate to fulfill the demands of their children. By the time the parents realize that their child is addicted to drugs, it is too late.

He said that a total of 8,729 cases have been registered in Anti-Retroviral Therapy Centers till May 2024. The total number of HIV infected is 5,674, of which 4,570 are men and 1,103 are women. One of the infected is transgender.

HIV patients are becoming addicted to drugs through injection

The highest risk of spreading HIV infection is from unsafe sex. In India too, the first case of HIV infection was reported in sex workers in 1986. Apart from this, HIV infection also spreads due to taking drugs through injection.

A United Nations report states that there are about 125 million people around the world who take drugs by injection. In many parts of the world, HIV cases are increasing rapidly due to injecting drugs. The United Nations says that people who take drugs by injection are 22 times more at risk of getting infected with HIV.

It is estimated that two lakh people in India take drugs by injection. The report of the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO) shows that more than 6% of the HIV infected in India were those who took drugs by injection. This report came in 2017. Obviously, now this figure would have increased further.

According to NACO, Mizoram has the highest number of HIV infected due to injecting drugs in India. Of all the HIV infected in Mizoram, about 20% of them used to take drugs by injection. Delhi is at number two, where the number of such infected is more than 16%.

A study was conducted in 2019 and 2020. This study was done on 2,697 people who took drugs through injection. During this, their HIV test was taken, in which 21.19% people were found positive. This tells how fast HIV is spreading due to drugs through injection.

About 99% of the people included in this study admitted to taking heroin. 21.3% of those who took heroin through injection were found HIV infected. Not only this, more than 54% of the people included in the study admitted to sharing injections. More than 24% of the people who shared injections for drugs were found HIV positive.

How dangerous is HIV?

HIV means Human Immunodeficiency Virus. This virus attacks the immune system of the body and weakens it so much that the body is not able to withstand any other infection or disease.

HIV is such a virus that if not treated on time, it later becomes a disease of AIDS. There is no sure cure for it yet. But with the help of some medicines, the viral load can be reduced.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 40 million people have lost their lives worldwide due to HIV and AIDS. By the end of 2022, about 40 million people worldwide were struggling with HIV-AIDS. In 2022 itself, more than six lakh deaths occurred due to this disease worldwide.

According to NACO, by 2023, more than 25 lakh people in India were infected with HIV. Last year, 68,451 new cases of HIV-AIDS were reported. Whereas, 35 thousand 866 people died due to this disease.

From HIV to AIDS… this is how the virus spreads

Having unsafe sex and coming in contact with infected blood increases the risk of HIV. It is very important to start its treatment at the right time. According to the US Center for Disease Control (CDC), flu-like symptoms appear when infected with HIV, such as fever, sore throat or weakness. After this, no symptoms are seen in this disease until it becomes AIDS. Symptoms like weight loss, fever or night sweats, fatigue and weakness are seen in AIDS. Usually, it takes three stages for HIV to turn into AIDS.

First stage: HIV infection spreads in the person’s blood. At this time, the person is at the highest risk of spreading the infection to many other people. Flu-like symptoms are seen in this stage. However, sometimes the infected person does not feel any symptoms.

Second stage: This is the stage in which the infected person does not show any symptoms, but the virus remains active. Sometimes more than 10 years pass, but the person does not need medicine. During this time, the person can spread the infection. Eventually the viral load increases and symptoms start appearing in the person.

Third stage: If medicine is started as soon as HIV is detected, then the chances of reaching this stage are very low. This is the most serious stage of HIV, in which the person suffers from AIDS. When a person has AIDS, the viral load in the person becomes very high and he becomes very infectious. In this stage, it is difficult for a person to live even for 3 years without treatment.

How to avoid it?

The greatest risk of spreading HIV infection is from unsafe sex. In India too, the first case of HIV was reported in sex workers. Therefore, use precaution while having sex. Apart from this, one should also stay away from those who take drugs through injection.

Symptoms appear. Usually it takes three stages for HIV to turn into AIDS

If HIV is detected, instead of panicking, start anti-retroviral therapy immediately, because HIV makes the body very weak and slowly other diseases also start to attack. There may be no cure for it yet, but it can be prevented through medicines.