April 2009
Your HIV-positive test result won't tell you the answer. All it tells you is that you've been infected with HIV. Some people can live many years with HIV before they need to take medications to control it.
However, every person who tests HIV positive should immediately have two additional tests: a CD4 count and a viral load test. These tests are the critical measuring tools you and your doctor will use to see what the virus is doing in (and to) your body.
This test, also known as a "T-cell count," gives an indication of the number of CD4 cells in your bloodstream. The more CD4 cells you have, the stronger your immune system is. After living with HIV for a while (if you don't take medications), the number of CD4 cells you have will usually fall. This is a sign that your immune system is being weakened. A normal CD4 count for someone without HIV is usually between 500 and 1,600. Experts generally agree that when your CD4 count goes below 350, you're at a high risk for developing potentially dangerous illnesses, so you should begin taking HIV medications before your CD4 count hits 350.
To learn more about CD4 count tests, click here.
Viral load tests provide an estimate of how much HIV is circulating in your blood. Generally speaking, your viral load is not considered as critical as your CD4 count in determining the health of your immune system. However, once you begin HIV treatment, it is a good measure of how well your HIV medications are working.
Dr. Adaora Adimora, physician at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill To read more about Dr. Adimora, click here. |
A viral load test measures the amount of HIV in a small amount (milliliter or mL) of your blood. Current viral load tests can detect as few as 50 copies of HIV per milliliter of blood. When your viral load test indicates that you have fewer than 50 copies/mL of HIV, your health care provider will tell you that your viral load is "below the limit of detection," or "undetectable." This does not mean that you no longer have HIV in your body. Even someone who has an "undetectable" viral load can transmit HIV to someone else. However, an "undetectable" viral load means that your medications are doing an excellent job of keeping HIV in check.
To learn more about viral load tests, click here.
Generally, whether a person is black or white, HIV meds appear to work the same way. The real problem, experts say, may be that African Americans are already at a higher risk for some health problems that HIV meds can cause or worsen.
For more on HIV treatment differences in African Americans, click here.
Be sure to stay on top of HIV as well as any other infections or illnesses. If you are infected, for example, with HIV and hepatitis B or C, your physician may refer you to a liver specialist who also specializes in HIV.
If you are seeing other health care providers, besides your HIV specialist, be sure that they are all in contact.
Current Guidelines Recommend:
Generally, every three to six months it's recommended that you visit your health care provider for a checkup and a new round of CD4 count and viral load tests. Based on your test results, you and your health care provider will have a clear picture of how HIV is progressing in your body, as well as when you should start or change HIV medications. |
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"We know that some black people bring mistrust of the medical system into their clinic visits ... It's my job, as a provider, to give people information and to earn their trust, but it really helps people when they enhance their own learning and bring that into the clinic visits too."