“HIV” causes vision loss?

What can this alleged virus not do?

I was recently alerted to the 8 minute interview lined below, which I’d like to share with you. I mean no disrespect whatsoever to this lady—going blind sounds absolutely horrifying—but how is “HIV” culpable, exactly?

Audio documentary: A woman losing her vision to HIV/AIDS shares memories with her son

This interview unfortunately does not elucidate how this woman’s vision loss was caused by “HIV.” I’ve never actually heard of this before. What the interview does, though, is appeal to emotion, which is always iffy. The woman under concern, Gina Velasquez, is discussing this vision loss with her son. Apparently, she had been diagnosed with “HIV” and AIDS at 27 at some point in the 1990s, and felt at the time that her dreams of being a mother had been dashed. But with the nineties came the heavy insistence on ARVs for pregnant women, and Ms. Velasquez felt at that time that she could take the chance on having a child and she did, a son named Aidan.

Unfortunately, the interview doesn’t say what year her child was born, although he sounds like he’s grown now. The part where they sing The Beatles is a bit over the top, but I can’t really point fingers when it comes to musical taste.

The transcript is included below the audio interview, if you prefer to read. The entire thing is quite odd—you’d think there might be some question raised as to how the depletion of CD4+ T cells and/or inflammation caused Ms. Velasquez’s vision loss. A quick google search revealed that yes, indeed, “HIV” is related to vision loss. One infection that causes vision loss that IS related to “HIV” is cytomegalovirus (CMV), but apparently there are other, non-specific, “HIV” mediated reasons for vision loss.

HIV and the Eye

In addition to CMV, we have:

HIV retinopathy: HIV retinopathy is the most common eye problem in people with HIV. This is a problem with the blood vessels in the retina, the lining at the back of the eye that senses light coming into the eye. The retina has tiny blood vessels that can get blocked or bleed which causes damage. Small hemorrhages (bleeding) and cotton wool spots (white spots that appear on the retina because of blocked blood vessels) are seen in the retina.

Are they being serious here?

We also have Kaposi’s sarcoma in the eye, which sounds like an absolute nightmare:

Kaposi’s sarcoma [kuh-poh-seez sarcoma]: Kaposi’s sarcoma is a rare tumor that occurs in the eyes of patients with HIV. It is a red or purple mass that forms on the white part of the eye or on the eyelid. Kaposi’s sarcoma can also appear on other places of the body, most commonly on the skin or mouth.

Had you heard of ocular KS? I hadn’t. Finally, we have:

Herpes zoster ophthalmicus (HZO) [her·pes zoster oph·thalmi·cus]: HZO is a common infection caused by reactivation of the chickenpox virus. It can occur in older adults (60+) or in younger people who are living with HIV. HZO can occur anywhere in the body, most commonly on the face and eyes. HZO causes a blistering and crusty rash to defined areas of the body. It can damage the eyes, causing pain and loss of vision. Squamous cell carcinoma of conjunctiva: Squamous cell carcinoma of conjunctiva is a cancer on the surface of the eye. It is more commonly seen in people with HIV/AIDS infection.

Lastly, “HIV” is blamed for a plethora of other problems, including “dry eye, syphilis, herpes virus, gonorrhea, chlamydia, toxoplasmosis, candida, pneumocystis, and microsporidia.”

So let me get this straight: these conditions are all caused by other infections, some of which (like herpes) are common in immunocompetent patients. I wish the people at NPR had specified which infection was causing Ms. Velasquez’s vision loss.

So what do you think is going on? Why on earth would “HIV” be blamed for vision loss?