- HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus.
- HIV has killed millions of people worldwide, and infected many more since it was first identified as a threat to public health more than 20 years ago.
- According to estimates by WHO and UNAIDS, 33 million people were living with HIV at the end of 20071
- In 2007, some 2.7 million people became newly infected with HIV, and 2 million died of AIDS, including 270,000 children1.
- The virus attacks a person's natural defence against disease - the immune system - weakening it over time.
- A person who has been infected with HIV is said to be HIV positive. They are likely to become more ill with time as their immune system fails and is less able to fight off other illnesses.
- Sub-Saharan Africa is thought to be most impacted by the virus, but it poses a huge challenge across most of the developing world.
- AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.
- When a person is infected with HIV, the virus attacks their immune system. When it becomes very damaged or they become sick with a number of particularly severe illnesses such as pneumonia, they are said to have AIDS.
1 World Health Organization