In 1986 the World Health Organization and others formerly decided that for surveillance and record keeping purposes it was sufficient to diagnose AIDS symptomatically.  So to be classified as having AIDS, patients should show two of the so-called major signs / symptoms.

The symptoms and diagnoses.

Included with the above they should also show one or more of the following minor signs.

The above became known as the Bangui definition and was accepted as sufficient despite the fact that numerous other conditions can fit this profile. Laboratory facilities remain scarce in rural areas in Africa and AIDS is diagnosed on this basis in many rural areas.

The reality: Taking the statistics into account it is a known fact, that collecting precise medical data in sub-Saharan Africa, with it's abject poverty is almost impossible. The UNAIDS and other organizations compute the number of HIV cases from counting HIV positive pregnant women who visit health clinics. The number is extrapolated in complex mathematical models to estimate the death toll.

HIV and AIDS cause an immune-system breakdown rather than a specific disease, so people can die of any one of dozens of diseases that has been here in Africa for decades. 

AZT and it's effects: At present we are made to believe that pregnant woman who are given AZT or other anti-retroviral drugs pass the HI virus to their babies at half the rate. When the Minister of Health in South Africa placed the drug on hold in1999, it created a huge outcry and protest marches from certain groups in South Africa. Subsequently the outcry has somewhat stifled, are they eventually realizing that maybe there is more to AZT?

Amongst scientist there are disputes about what exactly it is that mothers pass on to their babies, is it antibodies to the virus (protection) or is it the HI virus.

The standard  Elisa test only measures antibodies and in the few research studies where PCR is used the meaning of a positive test is disputed. Some scientist question the use of AZT or similar drugs to limit mother to child transmission they say its value is not proven and the risks are high. The US Food and Drug Administration Cleared AZT for human use despite serious flaws during testing. During the trial period deaths were minimal but soared when the trial ended. Reports in the New York Native newspaper in 1987 and 1992 based on documents acquired under the Freedom of Information Act bear testament to this fact.

The Great AIDS debate: The above information sparked off a huge debate and the President of South Africa Mr. Thabo Mbeki is asking scientist to answer coherently whether the science on aids is conclusive. He wants to know this so that he can make informed decisions about our health budget either to spend more on drugs, to treat the HI virus, behavioral education programs and a search for a vaccine or to spend our scarce resources on social and economic development and ultimately give the people of South Africa and the region a better chance of surviving into old age.

Evidence for the AIDS epidemic in Africa lie in the millions of people whose immune systems are compromised and who become ill with a group of diseases that have been bracketed as "opportunistic infections".

Diseases on the World Health Organization's list of AIDS-indicators have been around for generations, TB, Kaposi's, sarcoma, Thrush, Herpes, persistent skin rashes, certain pneumonia, diarrhea, weight loss and Cryptococcal meningitis. Some like TB were killing millions long before the advent of AIDS.

Next: The effects of malnutrition

Back to HIV / AIDS index page

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