HIV/AIDS General History
1981 - Documented AIDS history begins in about 1981 in the United States of America. It was initially thought to be a form of cancer affecting predominantly gay/ homosexual men. It was only later that the illness was diagnosed as the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). It was also discovered that in 1959, a man from Africa had died of a mysterious illness. Decades later, after examining some blood samples taken from him, it was confirmed that he had actually died from complications related to an HIV infection. Soon after the earliest reported cases in 1981, cases started to be seen in heterosexuals, drug addicts, and people who received blood transfusions, proving that the disease knew no boundaries.
1983 - In 1983, researchers at the Pasteur Institute in France managed to isolate a retrovirus believed to be related to AIDS.
1987 – A drug Retrovir (AZT, Zidovudine) was approved by the FDA in America, and began to be used in high doses to treat people infected with HIV.
By now there were 100,000 to 150,000 cases of HIV and AIDS.
1997 – Research revealed that Retrovir (AZT) used during pregnancy and at the time of delivery drastically reduces transmission of HIV from mother to child. This led to protocols that now drastically reduce transmission from mother to child from 1 in 4 to less than 3%.
1998 - European drug companies ignore US patent laws and begin making generic versions of HIV medications, intending to make these available to hard-hot African countries. In response, US drug companies file lawsuits to stop them.
2000 - South African president Thabo Mbeki questions the use and effectiveness of HIV medications as well as offering doubt that HIV causes AIDS.
2001 - US pharmaceutical companies drop their patent lawsuits, paving the way for European drug companies to manufacture and distribute cheaper HIV medications to the hardest hit areas of Sub-Saharan Africa.
By now, there were 31 million people living with HIV worldwide, the majority of whom were from African nations.
2005 – By 2005, work on an HIV vaccine had for the most part failed.
4.9 million people were newly infected in 2005, and there were 40.3 million people worldwide living with HIV/AIDS.
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