Co-factors, host susceptibility, and AIDS: an argument for stress

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) is perhaps the most serious communicable public-health disease of modern society. The human and societal devastation associated with this disease is tremendous. To date, a retrovirus (HTLV-III) has been implicated in the etiology of AIDS. There remains several critical questions, however, that only a more eclectic approach, certainly with a social science input, can more adequately address. Such questions have to deal with, for example, why are there differential out-comes regarding initiation, progress, and severity of AIDS?Realizing this need, this paper argues for the possible co-factor contribution of stress to host immune suppression and, ultimately, host susceptibility to the AIDS virus and its associated outcomes. A conceptual sociopsychophysiologic model of the entire stress process, ie, from onset, reaction up to and including effect, is presented and discussed. Within the context of the model, stress is viewed as a physiologic reaction and stressors are viewed as initiators of the stress process. The possible stress-AIDS experience is discussed using the model as a conceptual guiding tool. The paper concludes with the need for health educators to educate the general public, at-risk groups, and the medical and associated professions about the nature of stress, or in short, how best to cope with and manage stress within the context of available resources.