Symptoms of HIV

Symptoms of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is the primary cause of the chronic, possibly
fatal illness known as acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). HIV interferes with your
body's capacity to fight sickness and infection by weakening your immune system. A sexually
transmitted infection is HIV (STI). Additionally, it may be transferred by sharing needles,
injecting illegal substances, and coming into touch with contaminated blood. Additionally, it can
be passed from mother to kid when she is pregnant, giving birth, or nursing. Without treatment, it
can take years for HIV to progressively impair your immune system to the point where you get
AIDS. HIV/AIDS has no known cure; however, drugs help manage the infection and stop the
disease's development. International organizations are attempting to promote the accessibility of
preventative strategies and treatment in resource-poor nations. Antiviral therapies for HIV have
decreased AIDS fatalities globally. Depending on the stage of infection, there are different HIV
and AIDS symptoms.
Stage 1: Primary infection (Acute HIV)
Approximately 2 to 4 weeks after the HIV virus is injected into the body, some HIV-
positive individuals have flu-like symptoms. Primary (acute) HIV infection is a condition that
might last for a few weeks. This could be the possible signs and symptoms when you have an
Acute HIV infection: fever, headache, muscle aches and joint pain, rash, also sore throat and
painful mouth sores, swollen lymph glands, mainly on the neck, diarrhea, weight loss, cough,
and night sweats. You might not even be aware of these symptoms because they might be so
minor. The viral load, on the other hand, is now fairly high in your bloodstream. As a result,
during the first infection rather than the next stage, the virus spreads more readily.
Stage 2: Clinical latent infection (Chronic HIV)
While remaining in this stage, the virus only slightly replicates. People may not feel
unwell or exhibit any symptoms at this point. HIV infection at this stage is sometimes referred to
as chronic. People can remain in this stage without HIV therapy for 10 to 15 years, however
other people pass through it more quickly. You can live a long and healthy life and prevent the
spread of HIV to your HIV-negative partners through sex if you take HIV medications exactly as
directed and achieve and maintain an undetectable viral load. But even if you are asymptomatic
and your viral load can be detected, you can still transmit HIV at this stage. It's crucial to
routinely visit your doctor to have your viral load assessed.
Symptomatic HIV infection
In Symptomatic HIV infection, you may get minor illnesses or persistent symptoms like:
Fever, Fatigue, Swollen lymph nodes — often one of the first signs of HIV infection, Diarrhea,
Weight loss, Oral yeast infection (thrush), Shingles (herpes zoster), and Pneumonia.
Stage 3: AIDS
If you have HIV and are not receiving treatment, the virus will gradually erode your
body's immunological defenses, leading to AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). The
late stage of HIV infection is at this point. Among the signs of AIDS are: rapid weight loss,
recurring fever or profuse night sweats, extreme and unexplained tiredness, prolonged swelling
of the lymph glands in the armpits; groin or neck, also diarrhea that lasts for more than a week,
sores of the mouth, anus, or genitals, as well as pneumonia, then having a red, brown, pink, or
purplish blotches on or under the skin or inside the mouth, nose, or eyelids, memory loss,
depression, and other neurologic disorders.
Each of these signs may potentially be connected to different diseases. Getting tested is
the only surefire method to find out whether you have HIV. Based on certain medical criteria, a
health care professional will determine if you are HIV-positive and whether your infection has
advanced to stage 3 (AIDS). Since your body's immune system has been compromised,
opportunistic infections frequently cause serious HIV disease symptoms and illnesses.
Reference
Mayo Clinic (2022, July 29) HIV/AIDS – Symptoms and causes. Retrieved from:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hiv-aids/symptoms-causes/syc-20373524
HIV.gov (2022, June 15) Symptoms of HIV. Retrieved from:
https://www.hiv.gov/hiv-basics/overview/about-hiv-and-aids/symptoms-of-hiv

Symptoms of HIV

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Symptoms of HIV

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Symptoms of HIV

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Symptoms of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

Stage 1: Primary infection (Acute HIV)

Stage 2: Clinical latent infection (Chronic HIV)

Symptomatic HIV infection

HIV.gov (2022, June 15) Symptoms of HIV. Retrieved from:

You might also like