AIDS stands for which of the following?

• A. Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
• B. Human Immunodeficiency Syndrome
• C. Autoimmune Deficiency Syndrome
• D. Acute Infectious Disease Syndrome

Answer: (A)

AIDS stands for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome. The word choices describe the condition: acquired means the immune problem isn’t inherited but developed after exposure to an outside cause (the HIV infection). Immunodeficiency means the immune system is weakened and can’t defend the body effectively. Syndrome means a group of signs and illnesses that occur together because of that underlying immune failure. Together, they capture what the diagnosis represents: a chronic, progressive loss of immune function resulting from HIV.

The other phrases don’t fit the established term. “Human Immunodeficiency Syndrome” isn’t how the condition is defined, and it suggests a focus on humans rather than the medical meaning of the acronym. “Autoimmune Deficiency Syndrome” would imply the immune system attacks the body causing deficiency, which isn’t how AIDS is characterized. “Acute Infectious Disease Syndrome” would describe a temporary infection rather than the long-term immune deficiency that AIDS describes.