Biological, epidemiological and clinical basis of understanding human immunodeficiency virus infection

Human immunodeficiency virus (HN) causes a chronic infection beginning in m ost individuals with an acute syndrome followed by an asymptomatic stage an d progresses in untreated adults over a median of 10 years to the late stag e called AIDS. The virus rapidly and enormously replicates from the initiat ion of infection. The principal immunodeficiency caused by MN is depletion in the subset of T lymphocytes referred to as helper T cells. New anti-MN d rugs given in potent combination regimens have demonstrated impressive effi cacy by both clinical and Laboratory measures, and have provided evidence t hat drugs can suppress HN replication and disease manifestations. HIV/AIDS is still uncommon in Croatia. In the period from 1986 to 2000, 171 patients with AIDS have been, reported of whom 101 (59%) died. The incidence of AID S in 2000 was about 4 cases per million inhabitants. Recent testing of inje ction drug users at a needle exchange program (Help, Split) revealed an HN incidence of about 1%.