If you are unable to work because of HIV AIDS you may be able to make a TPD claim for a lump sum from the Total & Permanent Disablement insurance contained within your superannuation fund. There is no necessity for you to have been involved in an accident or to have suffered a work related injury to make a TPD claim. If you suffer from total and permanent disability, you may be able to make a TPD claim in addition to receiving your super early as a result of your condition. Our TPD claim solicitors can advise you in detail as to the requirements of a successful submission, they will prepare all relevant paperwork and will obtain full supporting documentation. Our TPD lawyers will give you advice on the likely success of your claim to a super fund, without further obligation. It costs nothing to use our advice service.

Our TPD claim solicitors use a risk free no win no fee arrangement.

We have offices situated in Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney and Darwin.

HIV AIDS - TPD

HIV or human immunodeficiency virus is the virus that causes AIDS or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, a severe and often lethal disease if not managed correctly. HIV dates back to around 1981, when it first passed around via sex with homosexual men. It then travelled to haemophiliacs and to heterosexual individuals. Now, just about anyone who exchanges blood or body fluid with another has the potential to get HIV disease.

HIV without AIDs can have no symptoms whatsoever. There are fortunately blood tests for the disease, including an ELISA test, which finds HIV antibodies in the blood. These results most be confirmed by doing a Western blot test that further defines the presence of HIV in the system. There are some saliva tests for HIV but they are less accurate. It takes several weeks to get HIV antibodies in the bloodstream so the test must be delayed or repeated in order to be sure the person doesn’t have HIV. A new test checks for HIV antibodies and the p24 antigen, which shrinks the window from infection to getting a diagnosis.

About twenty percent of all of those people who have HIV do not know they have the disease because they are not tested. These people are at a greater risk of giving the disease to others because they don’t know they have the disease. It is therefore recommended that all people between the ages of 13 and 64 be tested for the disease.

HIV is passed by means of blood (sharing needles or getting poked by an infected needle), having a break in the skin, or through sexual secretions. Vaginal secretions or semen can contain the HIV virus and there can be transmission of HIV from mother to child via the placenta in utero. Breastfeeding can transmit the virus. The virus can be transmitted from men to men, women to men, men to women and women to women through vaginal, anal or oral sexual activity. The best way to avoid transmission of the virus is to practice abstinence until both partners are sure to have no signs of the virus by blood testing. It takes 12-24 weeks before the test is surely positive. Condoms should be used with any uncertain partner. Dental dams should be used for oral sex. The sharing of needles should be avoided at all costs. This can happen through illicit drug use or anabolic steroid use. Tattooing and body piercing must be done by an individual that thoroughly sterilizes the equipment. Blood transfusions are a lesser cause of HIV transmission because the blood is now thoroughly tested for the presence of HIV.

HIV cannot be passed via casual exposure such as living in the same household as a victim of HIV. Kissing is not a risk factor as long as there are not open sores in the mouth or bleeding in the mouth. Saliva contains very little HIV particles. You should not share toothbrushes or shavers with a person who has HIV, however, because there is the chance of bleeding using these implements.

If a person has HIV, there are two blood tests used to monitor these individuals. One is the measurement of the CD4 cells, to test whether the immune system is working properly. The other test involves determining the overall viral load. It directly measures the amount of active virus in the bloodstream. HIV becomes symptomatic when the CD4 cell count drops below 200 cells per mm3. As the CD4 level drops, it means that the HIV disease is advancing. The viral load can tell what the HIV infection will likely do in the future. It can help doctors beef up treatment to prevent complications.

There is no cure for HIV but the currently available medications can lower the viral load to near zero. This means you cannot ever stop HIV treatment, even if there is no evidence of HIV in your system. The drugs for HIV all have side effects but are necessary to keep the viral load down. Resistance to the drugs is possible if you don’t take the medication at the right time or fail to take the medications in the right combination. Many antivirals already have shown resistance and are not used any more.

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