AIDS during the 1980s

In 1981, a rare lung infection was discovered in five gay men. Then in 1982, there was a significant amount of cases among gay men. At this point, many did not care because it was seen as the "natural" punishment of being gay.

Suddenly in 1983, aids was suddenly developing among women indicating that it passed through heterosexuals as well. Later, an institute in France discovered a new virus called Lymphadenopathy-Associated Virus (LAV) which stemmed from aids. Aids suddenly developed among children which allowed scientists to realize that aids passed through birth. By the end of 1983, more than 1200 people had died from aids and no cure was seen.

In 1984, blood tests were created with a hope to find vaccines. They found that one of the main causes that was spreading the disease (besides sex) was sharing needles when doing drugs. Freddie Mercury from Queen contracted aids because of this. In October, bathhouses and sex clubs were forced to close down to prevent further spreading of aids. By the end of 1984, there were more than 3,600 deaths because of aids.

In 1987, the WHO started a global program on aids to raise awareness. In March, AZT (antiretroviral zidovudine) as the first treatment drug for HIV. In July, WHO confirmed that HIV could be passed through breastfeeding. They estimated that 10 million people lived with HIV worldwide. The USA congress banned the entry of people who had HIV. Pulmonary tuberculosis, recurrent pneumonia and invasive cervical cancer were found to indicate aids.

This is only the progression of AIDS in the 1980s (when it was the worst). People were paranoid everyday that they might contract AIDS; it was a huge national fear. From 1900s and on, better treatments were discovered, and more people were aware. It only got better from there. It's still a huge problem in the US and schools (specifically health classes) are continuing to teach about the disease and its current statistics.