HIV in the context of "Sexual violence"

As of 2025, Afghanistan has an estimated population of around 49.5 million people. The country is characterized by a highly diverse, multi-ethnic, and multilingual society, reflecting its historical position at the crossroads of Central, South, and Western Asia, along ancient trade and invasion routes. The four major ethnic categories in the country are Pashtun, Tajik/Farsiwan, Hazara, and Uzbek. In addition, Afghanistan has a plethora of minor ethnic categories, including Turkmen, Baloch, Aimaq, Nuristani, Arab and many others. Together they make up the contemporary Afghan people.

Approximately 43% of the population was under the age of 15, and about 74% of Afghans lived in rural areas as of 2016. The country has one of the highest fertility rates in the world outside of Africa, with the average woman giving birth to five children over her lifetime. Around 6.8% of infants die during childbirth or early infancy. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the nation's average life expectancy was estimated at about 63 years as of 2019. The prevalence of HIV remains very low, affecting only about 0.04% of the population.

Oral sex, sometimes referred to as oral intercourse, is sexual activity involving the stimulation of the genitalia of a person by another person using the mouth (including the lips, tongue, or teeth). Cunnilingus is oral sex performed on the vulva while fellatio is oral sex performed on the penis. Anilingus, another form of oral sex, is oral stimulation of the anus.

Oral sex may be performed as foreplay to incite sexual arousal before other sexual activities (such as vaginal or anal intercourse), or as an erotic and physically intimate act in its own right. Like most forms of sexual activity, oral sex can pose a risk for contracting sexually transmitted infections (STIs). However, the transmission risk for oral sex, especially HIV transmission, is significantly lower than for vaginal or anal sex.

Immunosuppression is a reduction of the activation or efficacy of the immune system. Some portions of the immune system itself have immunosuppressive effects on other parts of the immune system, and immunosuppression may occur as an adverse reaction to treatment of other conditions.

In general, deliberately induced immunosuppression is performed to prevent the body from rejecting an organ transplant. Additionally, it is used for treating graft-versus-host disease after a bone marrow transplant, or for the treatment of auto-immune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, Sjögren's syndrome, or Crohn's disease. This is typically done using medications, but may involve surgery (splenectomy), plasmapheresis, or radiation. A person who is undergoing immunosuppression, or whose immune system is weak for some other reasons (such as chemotherapy or HIV), is said to be immunocompromised.

A zoonosis (/zoʊˈɒnəsɪs, ˌzoʊəˈnoʊsɪs/ ; plural zoonoses) or zoonotic disease is an infectious disease of humans caused by a pathogen (an infectious agent, such as a virus, bacterium, parasite, fungi, or prion) that can jump from a non-human vertebrate to a human. When humans infect non-humans, it is called reverse zoonosis or anthroponosis.

Major modern diseases such as Ebola and salmonellosis are zoonoses. HIV was a zoonotic disease transmitted to humans in the early part of the 20th century, though it has now evolved into a separate human-only disease. Human infection with animal influenza viruses is rare, as they do not transmit easily to or among humans. However, avian and swine influenza viruses in particular possess high zoonotic potential, and these occasionally recombine with human strains of the flu and can cause pandemics such as the 2009 swine flu. Zoonoses can be caused by a range of disease pathogens such as emergent viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites; of 1,415 pathogens known to infect humans, 61% were zoonotic. Most human diseases originated in non-humans; however, only diseases that routinely involve non-human to human transmission, such as rabies, are considered direct zoonoses.

Needle sharing is the practice of intravenous drug-users by which a needle or syringe is shared by multiple individuals to administer intravenous drugs such as heroin, steroids, and hormones. This is a primary vector for blood-borne diseases which can be transmitted through blood (blood-borne pathogens). People who inject drugs (PWID) are at an increased risk for Hepatitis C (HCV) and HIV due to needle sharing practices. From 1933 to 1943, malaria was spread between users in the New York City area by this method. Afterwards, the use of quinine as a cutting agent in drug mixes became more common. Harm reduction efforts including safe disposal of needles, supervised injection sites, and public education may help bring awareness on safer needle sharing practices.

Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms of cancer include a lump, abnormal bleeding, prolonged cough, unexplained weight loss, and a change in bowel movements. While these symptoms may indicate cancer, they can also have other causes. Over 100 types of cancers affect humans.

About 33% of deaths from cancer are caused by tobacco and alcohol consumption, obesity, lack of fruit and vegetables in diet and lack of exercise. Other factors include certain infections, exposure to ionizing radiation, and environmental pollutants. Infection with specific viruses, bacteria, and parasites causes approximately 16–18% of cancers worldwide. These infectious agents include Helicobacter pylori, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, HPV, Epstein–Barr virus, Human T-lymphotropic virus 1, Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus and Merkel cell polyomavirus. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) does not directly cause cancer, but it causes immune deficiency that can increase the risk of cancer from other infections, sometimes up to several thousandfold (in the case of Kaposi's sarcoma). Importantly, vaccination against the hepatitis B virus and the human papillomavirus have been shown to nearly eliminate the risk of cancers caused by these viruses in persons successfully vaccinated prior to infection.

Immunodeficiency, also known as immunocompromise, is a state in which the immune system's ability to fight infectious diseases and cancer is compromised or entirely absent. Most cases are acquired ("secondary") due to extrinsic factors that affect the patient's immune system. Examples of these extrinsic factors include HIV infection and environmental factors, such as nutrition. Immunocompromisation may also be due to genetic diseases/flaws such as SCID.

In clinical settings, immunosuppression by some drugs, such as steroids, can either be an adverse effect or the intended purpose of the treatment. Examples of such use is in organ transplant surgery as an anti-rejection measure and in patients with an overactive immune system, as in autoimmune diseases. Some people are born with intrinsic defects in their immune system, or primary immunodeficiency.

Porphyria cutanea tarda (PCT) is a form of long-term porphyria characterised by fragile skin and sore blisters in areas of skin that receive higher levels of exposure to sunlight, such as the face and backs of the hands. These blisters burst easily resulting in erosions, crusts, and superficial ulcers. There is often associated darkened skin color and extra facial hair growth. Healing is typically slow, leading to scarring and milia, while changes such as hair loss, and alterations in nails may also occur. A slightly purplish tint may be seen around the eyes. Scleroderma-like thick skin may develop over fingers, scalp, behind the ears, at the back of the neck, or in the front of the chest. The urine may appear dark. Unlike other porphyrias, PCT does not cause severe illness.

The disorder results from a deficiency of uroporphyrinogen III decarboxylase, used in the production of heme, a vital component of hemoglobin. It is generally divided into three types; familial, non-familial, and acquired. The condition can be related to liver disease and a history of excessive alcohol consumption. It is a recognised complication of hepatitis C. Other associated conditions include type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, HIV, SLE, and haemochromatosis. Smoking, and the use of estrogen in males with prostate cancer and females on combined contraceptive pill may also trigger PCT. Renal dialysis may cause retention of porphyrins and cause PCT.

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a preventable disease. It can be managed with treatment and become a manageable chronic health condition. While there is no cure or vaccine for HIV, antiretroviral treatment can slow the course of the disease, and, if used before significant disease progression, can extend the life expectancy of someone living with HIV to a nearly standard level. An HIV-positive person on treatment can expect to live a normal life, and die with the virus, not of it. Effective treatment for HIV-positive people (people living with HIV) involves a life-long regimen of medicine to suppress the virus, making the viral load undetectable.

Treatment is recommended as soon as the diagnosis is made. An HIV-positive person who has an undetectable viral load as a result of long-term treatment has effectively no risk of transmitting HIV sexually. Campaigns by UNAIDS and organizations around the world have communicated this as Undetectable = Untransmittable.

The 1990s (often referred and shortened to as "the '90s" or "the Nineties") was the decade that began on 1 January 1990, and ended on 31 December 1999. Known as the "post-Cold War decade", the 1990s were culturally imagined as the period from the Revolutions of 1989 until the September 11 attacks in 2001. The dissolution of the Soviet Union marked the end of Russia's status as a superpower, the end of a multipolar world, and the rise of anti-Western sentiment. China was still recovering from a politically and economically turbulent period. This allowed the US to emerge as the world's sole superpower, creating relative peace and prosperity for many western countries. During this decade, the world population grew from 5.3 to 6.1 billion.

The decade saw greater attention to multiculturalism and advance of alternative media. Public education about safe sex curbed HIV in developed countries. Generation X bonded over musical tastes. Humor in television and film was marked by ironic self-references mixed with popular culture references. Alternative music movements like grunge, reggaeton, Eurodance, K-pop, and hip-hop, became popular, aided by the rise in satellite and cable television, and the internet. New music genres such as drum and bass, post-rock, happy hardcore, denpa, and trance emerged. Video game popularity exploded due to the development of CD-ROM supported 3D computer graphics on platforms such as Sony PlayStation, Nintendo 64, and PCs.