UNAIDS has recently recommended new terms to be used when dealing with issues surrounding HIV.

According to the guidelines, rather than HIV/AIDS, HIV should be used unless one is specifically referring to AIDS. HIV and AIDS should also not be used; it should be AIDS unless specifically referring to HIV.

"Examples include people living with HIV, the HIV epidemic, HIV prevalence, HIV prevention, HIV testing, HIV-related disease, AIDS diagnosis, children made vulnerable by AIDS, children orphaned by AIDS and the AIDS response. Both HIV epidemic and AIDS epidemic are acceptable," the list published on the UNAIDS website in March this year, said.

Further, it was pointed out that there is no such thing as the "AIDS virus". The virus associated with AIDS is called the Human Immuno-deficiency Virus or HIV, therefore the term "HIV virus" is redundant and as such only HIV should be used. Persons should also avoid the term "AIDS-infected" and should use persons living with HIV or HIV-positive person. "No one can be infected with AIDS, because it is not an infectious agent. AIDS is a surveillance definition meaning a syndrome of opportunistic infections and diseases that can develop as immunosuppresion deepens along the continuum of HIV infection from primary infection to death," UNAIDS stated.

There is no such thing as an "AIDS test"; the right words to use are HIV test, or HIV antibody test. "AIDS sufferer or victim" should also not be used as "victim" is disempowering. One should use person living with HIV and the term AIDS should only be used when referring to a person with a clinical AIDS diagnosis. "AIDS patient" is also a no-no, as the term should only be used when referring to a clinical setting. It is preferred that "patient with HIV-related illness" be used.

There is also no "risk of AIDS", UNAIDS said, but rather, risk of HIV infection or risk of exposure to HIV. "High(er) risk groups" and "vulnerable groups" should be replaced with key populations at higher risk (both key to the epidemic's dynamics and key to the response). Commercial sex work should be replaced with sex work or commercial sex or the sale of sexual services.

The term prostitute, UNAIDS said, should only be used in respect to juvenile prostitution otherwise "sex worker" should be used. It is also recommended that "intravenous drug user" should be replaced with injecting drug user as drugs may be injected subcutaneously, intramuscularly or intravenously.

"Fight against AIDS" should be replaced with response to AIDS, while "evidence-based" should be evidence-informed instead. "HIV prevalence rates" should be just HIV prevalence since the word rates "connotes the passage of time".

It was also recommended that all acronyms and abbreviations should be spelt out in full for example PMTCT should be Prevention of Mother-to-child Transmis-sion.