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by 56J8XhH7voFRwPR 203 days ago
I know what you were getting at but I think it’s important to point out that people don’t actually die from HIV they die from AIDS which is caused by HIV.
1 comments

I'm probably 30 years late in asking this, but why does it strike you as an important distinction?
Why would it not be? It's like the distinction between "a crocodile" and "being mauled" or "a credit card" and "crippling debt"; while they may frequently co-occur, either can exist without the other. Further, recognizing that they are distinct allows you to build causal models, which are vital to taking productive action.
Honest question: Are there alternative ways people can get AIDS? If so, it's news to me.
Various other viral (and even less commonly, microbial) challenges, though it's rare. HIV is special in this regard because it's the only example (so far as I know) that's transmissible.