Symptoms of HIV and How to Interpret Them
We often receive calls from individuals concerned about the symptoms of HIV.
Nausea, sore throat, fatigue, night sweats and hundreds of other symptoms fill the list.
However, HIV causes opportunistic infections; therefore, just about any symptom could be considered a symptom of HIV.
The human immunodeficiency virus is one that attacks the immune system, and as a result makes the carrier more susceptible to other infections.
So when one experiences symptoms of HIV, essentially they are experiencing the symptoms of other infections.
The symptoms of HIV are extremely generalized, which can be a good or bad thing depending on how you look at it.
It's good if you understand that the symptoms can be caused by just about anything, including the common cold and, not surprisingly, the stress from worrying about an HIV infection.
Not to mention you're far more likely to contract a cold than to contract HIV.
It's bad if you dwell on the generalized symptoms.
Many people find themselves focusing on these generalized symptoms, which in turn cause them to stress, which in turn brings on more symptoms, and the circle endlessly repeats itself.
It's a vicious circle of stress and worry.
The best thing that someone worrying about HIV can do is to go get tested.
The most common way of testing for HIV is with the ELISA antibody test.
The test is quick and simple, often requiring only a blood draw and it returns results in one or two days.
However, it does carry a 6-12 week window period.
What this means is that any possible exposures within the past 6-12 weeks may not show up in the test result.
For someone stressing about HIV symptoms from a recent contact, waiting 6-12 weeks for a reliable test result is not an easy thing to do.
Thankfully there is another testing option that can give conclusive results as early as 28 days after the contact: The HIV DNA PCR.
The HIV DNA PCR looks for the pro-viral DNA of HIV, so, unlike the ELISA antibody test, it does not depend on the immune system's reaction to the virus.
Instead, it requires only 10 copies of the DNA per milliliter of whole blood to obtain a positive test result.
To give you an idea of how little an amount this is, estimates suggest viral copies are in the count of greater than 1 million per milliliter of whole blood between 11 and 16 days post exposure.
Therefore, a test can be done with confidence anytime around or after this time frame.
In conclusion, if you have had a possible exposure and are concerned about HIV, do not worry about the symptoms.
Instead, look at the risk of contracting HIV (it is not contracted as easily as many people think), then if you are still concerned contact a counselor to discuss your options and make arrangements for testing.
In the end, getting an answer is a lot better than endlessly stressing about the question.
Nausea, sore throat, fatigue, night sweats and hundreds of other symptoms fill the list.
However, HIV causes opportunistic infections; therefore, just about any symptom could be considered a symptom of HIV.
The human immunodeficiency virus is one that attacks the immune system, and as a result makes the carrier more susceptible to other infections.
So when one experiences symptoms of HIV, essentially they are experiencing the symptoms of other infections.
The symptoms of HIV are extremely generalized, which can be a good or bad thing depending on how you look at it.
It's good if you understand that the symptoms can be caused by just about anything, including the common cold and, not surprisingly, the stress from worrying about an HIV infection.
Not to mention you're far more likely to contract a cold than to contract HIV.
It's bad if you dwell on the generalized symptoms.
Many people find themselves focusing on these generalized symptoms, which in turn cause them to stress, which in turn brings on more symptoms, and the circle endlessly repeats itself.
It's a vicious circle of stress and worry.
The best thing that someone worrying about HIV can do is to go get tested.
The most common way of testing for HIV is with the ELISA antibody test.
The test is quick and simple, often requiring only a blood draw and it returns results in one or two days.
However, it does carry a 6-12 week window period.
What this means is that any possible exposures within the past 6-12 weeks may not show up in the test result.
For someone stressing about HIV symptoms from a recent contact, waiting 6-12 weeks for a reliable test result is not an easy thing to do.
Thankfully there is another testing option that can give conclusive results as early as 28 days after the contact: The HIV DNA PCR.
The HIV DNA PCR looks for the pro-viral DNA of HIV, so, unlike the ELISA antibody test, it does not depend on the immune system's reaction to the virus.
Instead, it requires only 10 copies of the DNA per milliliter of whole blood to obtain a positive test result.
To give you an idea of how little an amount this is, estimates suggest viral copies are in the count of greater than 1 million per milliliter of whole blood between 11 and 16 days post exposure.
Therefore, a test can be done with confidence anytime around or after this time frame.
In conclusion, if you have had a possible exposure and are concerned about HIV, do not worry about the symptoms.
Instead, look at the risk of contracting HIV (it is not contracted as easily as many people think), then if you are still concerned contact a counselor to discuss your options and make arrangements for testing.
In the end, getting an answer is a lot better than endlessly stressing about the question.
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