Abstract
Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a leading infectious cause of adult death in the world. Untreated disease caused by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has a case fatality, which approaches 100%. First case of AIDS was described in 1981, when previously healthy young adults mainly men living in urban areas of United State, began falling ill with opportunistic infections previously unknown among this age group. Similar infections were also described in Africa and Europe. HIV was identified as causative agent of AIDS in 1983. In the same year professor Luc Montagnier and other discovered a novel pathogen: a retrovirus tropic for the CD4 cells that orchestrate cell mediated immunity.1 The most heavily burdened continent is Africa. Out of 28 millions deaths due to AIDS world wide at the end of 2002, nearly 70% have occurred on this continent.2 HIV infections has caused epidemics of TB in some African countries and many concluded that the disease cannot be controlled without effective treatment of AIDS.3 In eastern Mediterranean countries, a three fold increase in AIDS cases was recoded in 1999-2001 and is still on the rise.4

Key words: HIV, AIDS, Acquired immune deficiency