Skin disease in AIDS. Rash on a woman's back. The rash is due to folliculitis, the inflammation of the follicles, structures in the skin from which hair grows. The condition is caused by a bacterial infection. The disease has reached an advanced stage because the woman has AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome). This disease is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). It weakens the immune system, making the patient susceptible to opportunistic infections and making normally harmless infections life threatening. Photographed in Africa.