Argument
ART is a mixture of drugs that are used to treat people infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). It decreases the patient’s total burden of HIV, maintains functions of the immune system, and prevents opportunistic infections that often lead to death. ART saves lives because it allows people with HIV to live longer and prevents new HIV infections. Understanding the importance of ART in HIV management is essential for any health professional regardless of the specialty.
Key Points
- ART helps to maintain the functions of the immune system.
- ART prevents opportunistic infections.
- ART prevents the transmission of HIV between partners.
Audience
The intended audience is medical students and health professionals who wish to learn about the importance of ART. The possible challenges may include supporting the arguments with factual information that would be convincing and relevant to the readers. The essay should be written in clear and concise language that matches the level of medical knowledge of the audience.
Goal
The goal of the essay is to increase the level of awareness of readers on the importance of ART. Health professionals who encounter HIV-positive patients in their practice should be able to better understand their needs in relation to treatment. In order to achieve this goal, the essay needs to be both informative and convincing and present information in a clear and accessible way.
Resources
The resources include scholarly articles on the subject, the reports of international and national health organizations and agencies, and HIV resources. They provide statistical data on the effectiveness of ART and the results of studies conducted among HIV-positive patients. A brief overview of HIV treatment programs should also be included in the essay to support the argumentation.
References
Low, A., Gavriilidis, G., Larke, N., B-Lajoie, M.-R., Drouin, O., Stover, J., Muhe, L., & Easterbrook, P. (2016). Incidence of opportunistic infections and the impact of antiretroviral therapy among HIV-infected adults in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Clinical Infectious Diseases, 62(12), 1595–1603. Web.
Lundgren, J., & Philips, A. (2017). Prevention of HIV transmission by antiretroviral therapy.The Lancet HIV, 5(3), 108–109. Web.
Zanni, M., Toribio, M., Robbins, G., Burdo, T., Lu, M., Ishai, A., Feldpausch, M., Martin, A., Melbourne, K., Triant, V., Suchindran, S., Lee, H., Hoffmann, U., Williams, K., Tawakol, A., & Grinspoon, S. (2016). Effects of antiretroviral therapy on immune function and arterial inflammation in treatment-naïve patents with human immunodeficiency virus infection.JAMA Cardiology, 1(4), 474–480. Web.