For many people, the media is a main source of information about diseases. Find out how advancements in treatments and our understanding of HIV are allowing people to live fuller lives. Also view lists of FDA-approved drugs. HIV treatment and prevention have come a long way in recent years. We explain the treatments and prevention methods that are bringing us closer to an….
Learn about HIV organizations in the United States and Africa working to support their communities through education and empowerment. Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. CD4 vs. These values give them and their healthcare team important information about: the health of their immune system the progression of HIV in their body how their body responds to HIV therapy how the virus itself responds to HIV therapy The aim of treatment is to raise the CD4 count and lower the viral load.
What is a CD4 count? What is a viral load? CD4 count vs. How serious is this? CD4 level Viral load A person needs medical attention and will need prophylactic medications to prevent opportunistic infections. Getting tested. CD4 status Need for testing Most people with detectable virus.
May be optional. Status Frequency of testing The person has just started antiretroviral treatment or their doctor has changed their treatment. After 2—8 weeks Until the viral load becomes undetectable. Every 4—8 weeks While the viral load is stable.
Every 3—4 months After levels remain stable for 2 years. Up to 6 months interval. Why is it important to get tested regularly? Why is HIV therapy so important? Read this next. In casual situations especially, this may mean taking your partner's word for it or guessing their HIV status. In a situation where a lot of people have HIV without realising it and where most people with diagnosed HIV are taking HIV treatment, having sex without a condom with partners who appear to be HIV negative is not a safe strategy.
Not everyone taking HIV treatment has an undetectable viral load. Until then they may still be infectious. The British HIV Association recommends that you and your partner should not make any decisions about stopping using condoms until their viral load has been undetectable for at least six months. But nearly everyone finds a combination that works and the risk of treatment failing declines over time.
This should not be a cause for concern. These studies showed that transmission does not occur below this level. An undetectable viral load prevents HIV transmission during oral sex , vaginal sex and anal sex. But an undetectable viral load is also crucial for conception, pregnancy and birth. If a woman with HIV maintains an undetectable viral load during pregnancy, the risk of HIV being passed on to their baby is just 0. During breastfeeding , an undetectable viral load greatly reduces the risk of passing HIV on, although it does not completely eliminate this possibility.
In the UK and other countries where clean water and sterilising equipment are available, bottle feeding with formula milk is the safest way for mothers living with HIV to feed their babies. Primary tabs View active tab Preview. A health care professional will take a blood sample from a vein in your arm, using a small needle. After the needle is inserted, a small amount of blood will be collected into a test tube or vial.
You may feel a little sting when the needle goes in or out. This usually takes less than five minutes. You don't need any special preparations for an HIV viral load. But if you are getting this test to find out if you are infected with HIV, you should talk with a counselor before or after your test so you can better understand the results and your treatment options.
There is very little risk to having a blood test. You may have slight pain or bruising at the spot where the needle was put in, but most symptoms go away quickly. Below is a list of typical results. Your results may vary depending on your health and even the lab used for testing. Learn more about laboratory tests, reference ranges, and understanding results. While there is no cure HIV, the disease can be managed with medicines.
ART can make the viral load undetectable. That means the viral load is so low it can't be detected on a test. In the first few weeks after contracting HIV, viral load is usually extremely high. People with high viral loads are more infectious and can pass HIV on more easily. On the other hand, if HIV in your blood is undetectable, it is likely to be undetectable in your semen, vagina fluid or rectum as well.
Between the two of them, they recruited gay couples and heterosexual couples in which one partner had HIV and the other did not.
Over the course of the study, the gay couples had 77, acts of condomless penetrative sex and the heterosexual couples 36, acts. In , a similar study exclusively of gay male couples, Opposites Attract , also found no transmissions from partners with an undetectable viral load in 17, acts of condomless anal sex.
A lot of people with HIV see not being infectious and the associated relief from anxiety about transmission as very important benefits of HIV treatment. You may wish to take your viral load and your likely infectiousness into consideration when thinking about safer sex. If you want to stop using condoms, it is important to wait six months after your first undetectable viral load test, to be sure that treatment is working. It is also important to discuss this issue carefully with your partners and ensure they are also comfortable with the decision.
While HIV treatment and an undetectable viral load will protect your partners from your HIV, they do not protect them or you from other sexually transmitted infections STIs. Also, in some countries, condomless sex without disclosing your HIV status is a criminal offence, regardless of the likelihood of HIV transmission.
If you are using HIV treatment in order to prevent sexual transmission, it is recommended to have it checked more often every three to four months than might otherwise be the case. This is to check that your viral load is still undetectable. While your CD4 cell count is the main indicator your doctor will use to help monitor the health of your immune system, viral load testing can also provide important information.
Among people with the same CD4 cell counts, research has shown that those with a higher viral load tend to develop symptoms more quickly than those with a lower viral load. In addition, among people with the same viral load, those with lower CD4 cell counts tend to become ill more quickly. Viral load. Primary tabs View active tab Preview. Roger Pebody. May
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