With early and effective treatment, people living with HIV can lead lives no different from others. Show
What is HIV and AIDS?HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus. An HIV infection weakens the body's immune defences by destroying CD4 (T-cell) lymphocytes, which are white blood cells that protect us against attacks by bacteria, viruses and other harmful pathogens. When these white blood cells are destroyed or weakened, they will no longer able to defend the body effectively against infections. This increases the risk of severity of some common diseases and conditions, as well as a higher risk of getting some cancers. With advancements in science, early and effective treatment can suppress the viral load, allowing a person living with HIV (PLHIV) to lead a life no different from others. If someone infected with HIV does not seek effective treatment early enough, their immune system can become weak. The disease then progresses to a condition called Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). This is the most advanced stage of HIV; it can take up to 10 years to develop into AIDS. Without treatment, people with AIDS can be susceptible to opportunistic infections and become very ill. HIV/AIDS is one of many sexually transmitted infections (STI). Click here to find out more about other types of STIs. How does HIV spread?HIV is transmitted:
In recent years, about 200-400 new HIV cases are diagnosed every year in Singapore. Sexual transmission remains the main mode of transmission. Visit this link for the latest updates. HIV does not spread via:
Are men who have sex with men and drug users more likely to get infected with HIV? In Singapore, almost all HIV infections have been transmitted through sexual intercourse with a person who is infected with HIV and has unknowingly passed it on to their sexual partner. Anyone who participates in high-risk behaviours such as sexual activity without using a condom, casual / commercial sex, or sex with multiple partners is at risk of becoming infected with HIV. HIV does not discriminate or select who to infect based on a person's gender identity or the genders of those they participate in sexual activity with. In 2020, 37% of all cases were from heterosexual transmission, 48% were from homosexual transmission and 11% were from bisexual transmission. How can I prevent HIV?You can protect yourself from HIV by:
I may have been exposed to HIV or think my activities may put me at risk of being exposed to HIV in the future. What are some additional ways I can prevent getting infected with HIV? There are preventive medications that can be used for potential exposure to HIV. Medication taken after exposure is called PEP, or Post-Exposure Prophylaxis, and can reduce the risk of becoming infected with HIV. This medication may be recommended after a rape, needlestick injury (injuries caused by needles that puncture the skin) or if a condom has broken during a high-risk sexual activity. To learn more about exposure prophylaxis, click here. How do I know if I have HIV?Usually, an HIV-infected person may not notice any symptoms. However, some people may experience the following symptoms:
The only way to be sure of your HIV status is to go for a test. Every adult at the age of 21 years and above should get tested for HIV at least once in their lifetime, which is based on the National HIV Programme HIV Testing Recommendations by the National Centre for Infectious Diseases. You should get tested if:
This list is by no means exhaustive. If you feel you may be at risk, getting screened for HIV is the crucial first step to knowing your HIV status. Get yourself tested more frequently (or every 3 to 6 months) if you are engaging in any sexually risky behaviour. Knowing your status enables you to receive treatment early and prevent others from getting infected. Where can I get tested for HIV?You can get yourself tested for STIs or HIV/AIDS at most GP (General Practitioner) clinics, polyclinics, and hospitals in Singapore. Most clinics offer routine HIV screening services, while some also offer rapid HIV testing. Rapid HIV tests produce very quick results. In approximately 20 minutes, you may be able to know your HIV status. To learn which clinics offer rapid test services, click here. If you prefer anonymity, there are clinics in Singapore that offer anonymous HIV rapid tests. No identifiable information will be taken during anonymous testing. Instead, a number not linked to your identity is assigned to the test. This allows one to receive either a negative or a positive test result without revealing their identity. Please see the table below for the list of Anonymous Testing clinics. You can identify them easily by looking out for this icon too:
How does HIV testing work?An HIV infection causes the body to produce antibodies, which is an immunological response by the body to fight the infection. These antibodies can be picked up by HIV tests to indicate the presence of an HIV infection in the person. There are two main ways in which this can be done. Typically, a conventional laboratory-based blood test is administered and the results are made available 2 weeks later. Since 2007, the Ministry of Health has approved a second method of detecting HIV infections through the use of rapid HIV test kits in clinics for screening. Results of rapid tests can be out in less than 20 minutes. If the rapid test reveals a positive result for HIV, a confirmatory laboratory blood test is required, which involves drawing of a small tube of blood by the doctor. Currently, there are rapid HIV test kits registered and available at most hospitals and clinics in Singapore. As with all other screening tests, a positive result needs to be confirmed further by a conventional full blood test, which uses specialised laboratory testing to detect the virus accurately. The rapid HIV test kits are not currently approved for home use or self-administration in Singapore. The test must be performed and the results interpreted by a trained personnel. What are the advantages of a rapid HIV test?
Does a negative result confirm that I am not infected? What happens if the test result is positive? What if the confirmatory blood test result is positive too? Can HIV be treated?While there is currently no cure for HIV, there are advancements in medical treatment which have shown that HIV can be suppressed effectively with early and consistent treatment. Knowing your HIV status early allows you to seek treatment and delay the onset of AIDS and further complications. After being diagnosed, can someone who has been infected with HIV live long? Yes, with early and effective treatment, people living with HIV can lead lives no different from others. Although there is no cure for HIV, people living with HIV can be treated with antiretroviral therapy which is very effective at controlling the infection. With consistent treatment, the viral load can be kept low and HIV cannot spread or develop into AIDS. If you require HIV treatment, subsidies for medicines for HIV treatment are available for eligible Singapore residents. Living with HIV and HIV stigma
Under the Infectious Diseases Act, it is an offence for people who know their HIV/AIDS positive status to not inform their sexual partners of it before engaging in sexual intercourse. If you believe you have HIV or AIDS, or are at risk of contracting the virus, you must:
How can I do my part to support those living with HIV or may be at risk of HIV? How can I talk about HIV in a way that is not discriminatory or stigmatising towards people living with HIV? The words we use to talk about HIV can have a powerful impact on those living with HIV or those who may be considering getting tested for HIV. Being mindful of what we say and how we talk about HIV and people living with HIV goes a long way in encouraging those at risk to get tested regularly. Avoid probing about how a person got infected as that may be personal and has little value in how they manage living with the virus. They may feel like they are being judged. The focus should be on detecting the infection early and supporting them in their treatment journey to curb the spread of HIV and the impact HIV can have on their health. Knowing and sharing information to combat misconceptions about how HIV is transmitted helps remove fear and stigma of living and working with someone who is infected with the HIV virus. Is there any legislation or policies with regards to employment issues relating to HIV/AIDS? Singapore has no specific employment legislation regarding HIV/AIDS at the workplace. Employment should be based on merit. Candidates should not be discriminated against due to medical conditions including HIV/AIDS. They should be fairly considered based on their ability to do the job. Watch this video to understand how misconceptions on HIV lead to stigma, discrimination & onward transmission. Busting some myths about HIVMYTH HIV can be transmitted if I share a meal or drink with an HIV-positive person. BUSTED HIV cannot be passed on by sharing food, drinks or utensils, or even if the person preparing the food has HIV. This is because HIV is not transmitted through saliva. Even if the food contains traces of HIV-positive blood, heat from cooking and our stomach acids would destroy the virus. MYTH Those who share a swimming pool with a person living with HIV are at risk of getting the virus. BUSTED HIV is a sensitive virus and is easily destroyed during the water treatment process. Hence, HIV cannot spread via water in the swimming pool. MYTH Mosquitoes can transmit HIV. BUSTED HIV is not transmitted by mosquitoes, ticks or any other insects. This is because HIV is destroyed in the stomach of mosquitoes. In addition, mosquitoes have two one-way channels i.e. the alimentary channel through which they suck the blood of the people they bite, and the salivary channel through which they inoculate the saliva into the people they bite. Thus, even if a mosquito bites a person with HIV and then bites someone else, it won’t transmit HIV to the next person. MYTH HIV is transmitted via air and spreads through sneezing, coughing, and the air conditioning system. BUSTED HIV cannot survive long enough to spread through the air. When fluid leaves the body and is exposed to air, it dries up. As drying occurs, the virus, if present, dies and becomes non-infectious. HIV cannot be transmitted through air and droplets. If you would like to do your part to contribute to destigmatisation efforts, a generic logo is available for use:
Please email us at for more information. This article was last reviewed on Friday, September 16, 2022 18 HIV and AIDS Catalog-Item Reuse
What increases risk of contracting HIV?HIV is mainly spread by having anal or vaginal sex without a condom or without medications to prevent or treat HIV. Risk behaviors such as having condomless sex and having multiple sexual partners are common among teens and young adults, who have very high rates of HIV compared to other Americans.
What are 3 risk behaviors for getting HIV?The most common risks are:. Having Unprotected Sex. Most people get HIV by having sex. ... . Drug Use. Using needles to inject drugs raises the risk of HIV. ... . Having Certain Health Problems. Having a sexually transmitted infection (STI) makes a person's risk of HIV higher. ... . Blood Products. ... . Having Certain Jobs.. Which of the following people is at highest risk for contracting HIV?Gay or bisexual MSM are the most severely affected population. MSM account for just a small fraction (2 percent) of the total U.S. population, yet nearly two-thirds of all new infections occurred within this group in 2009, and one-half of all people living with HIV in 2008 were MSM.
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