1. The AIDS virus is very hardy and can live outside the body.

2. You can catch AIDS after drinking from the glass used by an HIV-infected person.

3. It is highly unlikely to contract AIDS from a blood transfusion.

4. Going to the dentist puts you at risk for becoming infected with the AIDS virus.

5. Kids can catch AIDS from attending school with a classmate who is infected with HIV.

6. You can get AIDS from shaking hands with someone who has AIDS.

7. Kids can get AIDS by being bitten by mosquitoes or other insects.

8. The most common reason kids under 12 contract AIDS is being born to their HIV-infected mother.

9. The AIDS virus takes over the cells in the infected person’s immune system, destroying the cells’ disease fighting capabilities.

10.The body fluids most often implicated in the transmission of AIDS are semen, vaginal secretions, and blood.

11. An adolescent has sexual intercourse with a known HIV-infected partner without practicing "safe sex." An AIDS antibody test is negative four weeks after the relationship. One can say that the adolescent has not been infected with the virus.

12. The HIV antibody test is positive but the individual has no symptoms. They cannot pass the virus on to others.

13. An individual with a positive antibody test showing infection with the AIDS virus can show no symptoms for five years or more.

14. AIDS only occurs in gay men and women.

15. All individuals infected with the HIV virus have AIDS.

16. Currently there is no cure for AIDS.

17. You can contract HIV by donating blood.

18. AIDS cases among teens are rising at a rate of 60% a year.

19. Most infants born with AIDS infection have died by 18 months of age.

20. If a dog bites someone with AIDS, and then bites you, you can catch AIDS.

21. The AIDS virus is so deadly that all hopes of making a vaccine against it are useless.

22. Condoms are an effective means of preventing the spread of AIDS.

23. The first case of AIDS was described in the early 1980’s.

24. AIDS commonly affects the body but not the mind.

25. If you have unprotected sex with someone who has AIDS only once, you cannot catch AIDS.

ANSWERS

1. FALSE. The AIDS virus is actually quite flimsy and dies when the fluid it lives in, usually semen or blood, is exposed to air and dries out. It does not live long or well outside the human body, probably for not longer than a few hours. Wiping up the fluids with household bleach can kill the virus. In addition, the virus can be washed from the hands or skin with regular soap.

2. FALSE. There has never been any reported cases of AIDS being transmitted from using silverware, glasses, or any other eating utensils used by an HIV-infected person. Furthermore, you cannot get AIDS from food that has been handled, prepared, or served by someone who is infected with the AIDS virus.

3. TRUE. HIV infection from blood transfusion is rare. Since 1985, when blood banks began routinely testing donations, less than 20 cases of AIDS have been traced to transfusions. In the interest of making the blood supply as safe as possible, donors are screened for risk factors and donated blood is tested for the AIDS antibody. People known to have contracted AIDS from transfusions, like tennis pro Arthur Ashe, were infected prior to 1985.

4. FALSE. The likelihood of contracting HIV from a dentist, while possible, has always been remote. And now that all health-care workers operate under strict government standards known as "universal precautions," the chances are negligible.

The highly publicized case in Florida was by a dentist who for some reason apparently purposely infected his patients.

5. FALSE. One of the saddest commentaries of our times is uneducated parents protesting the attendance of HIV infected kids in their kid’s school. There has never been a youth or teacher who contracted HIV in this way. The virus is not transmitted through the air, or by sneezing or coughing. The HIV does not live on toilet seats, or other everyday objects, even those on which body fluids may sometimes be found. Other examples of everyday objects are doorknobs, phones, and drinking fountains, or via toilet seats, clothes, or phones.

6. FALSE. There has never been a reported case of AIDS being transmitted by casual contact (like handshakes or hugs).

7. FALSE. The scientific community is well-convinced that insect and mosquito bites are not a mode of transmission. It is important to remember that while mosquitoes do withdraw blood from people, they do not exchange blood between people. In addition, mosquitoes are incapable of reproducing the AIDS virus. You cannot get AIDS from bed bugs, lice, flies, or other insects, either.

8. TRUE. Over 85% of childhood AIDS occurs from perinatal infections-that is, their mothers are infected with the AIDS virus and pass this infection on to the fetus before they are born. Before 1985, a number of people were infected through blood transfusions or the use of blood products to treat the bleeding disease hemophilia.

9. TRUE. The AIDS virus leaves the infected person vulnerable to a variety of unusual, life-threatening illnesses. The virus then uses the reproductive mechanism of the cell to make more viruses. This is one of many reasons that it is difficult to control the AIDS virus.

10. TRUE. The AIDS virus has been found in blood, semen, urine, vaginal secretions, spinal fluid, tears, saliva, and breast milk. Of these, only semen, vaginal secretions, and blood are implicated in transmission. There are also cases in which babes have contracted AIDS through infected breast milk. Stool is also considered a risk because feces often contain blood. There has not been a single case of transmission of the AIDS virus by saliva, sweat, urine or tears. Apparently, the concentration of the virus in these fluids is not strong enough to cause infection.

11. FALSE. The adolescent may have been infected by the virus but has not yet produced antibodies. Research indicates that while most people will produce antibodies within 2-12 weeks after infection, some people will not produce antibodies for six months or more.

12. FALSE. Most people with HIV antibodies have the virus in their bodies. Therefore, a person with a positive test must assume they are capable of passing the virus on to others under the correct circumstances.

13. TRUE. The most recent research suggests the average length of incubation is seven to eight years. Some people have been infected with the AIDS virus for ten years and still have no symptoms, and some researches suspect the virus could incubate for as long as 15 to 20 years in some people.

14. FALSE. Most people with AIDS in the United States are gay men, but the incidence is quickly rising in heterosexual men and women, especially adolescents. AIDS does not discriminate. People who have died of AIDS in the United States have been male and female, rich and poor, white, black, Hispanic, Asian, and native Americans.

15. FALSE. Once a person is infected with the HIV, the virus will be present for life. But HIV infection is not the same as AIDS. People with HIV infection may be free of symptoms for years, and AIDS occurs only after the immune system is destroyed by the virus and symptoms develop.

16. TRUE. While there are promising new medical treatments that can postpone many of the illnesses associated with AIDS, there is currently no cure for AIDS.

17. FALSE. The needles that are used for blood donations are brand new. Once they are used, they are destroyed. There is no way you can come into contact with the AIDS virus by donating blood.

18. TRUE. The adolescent age group has the highest rate of new AIDS cases, faster than the rate of increase among adults. 20% of the AIDS patients are 20-29 years old, and most were infected with HIV during their teen years.

19. TRUE and FALSE. For many years, newborns who were infected by their mothers were often quite ill by one year of age. This occured because newborn do not have a fully developed immune system, making them very sensitive to the virus. However, medical advances have made it possible for infants who are identified as HIV+ early to receive treatments that can preserve immune system functioning and thereby dramatically increase life expectancy. It is true that this is specific to children who are born HIV+ in developed countries, like the US, that have access to appropriate medications. On the other hand, transmission to a newborn can be drastically reduced if women know their HIV status during pregnancy and have access to medications during pregnancy. Therefore, children who receive appropriate treatment can have a much better life expectancy and that early identification of HIV in pregnancy (or before) can significantly decrease HIV transmission to a new baby.

20. FALSE. Animals cannot catch this illness from people, and people cannot catch it from animals. It is true that cats and monkeys can get their own version of the disease, but this cannot be transmitted to humans.

21. FALSE. Many experts are confident that an AIDS vaccine will be available within the next 10-15 years.

22. TRUE. Although not 100%, the correct use of condoms will decrease one’s chances of catching the AIDS virus from a high-risk encounter.

23. FALSE. Medical research has revealed that a teenager who died in the early 1960’s may have in fact died of AIDS.

24. FALSE. All AIDS victims who live long enough develop a thinking disorder known as AIDS related dementia.

25. FALSE. Just like the risk of pregnancy, AIDS can be transmitted during any sexual encounter with a HIV infected person.