How Many Times Does It Take To Get Hiv

Can You Get Hiv From Having Sex With Someone Who Has Aids

If you have sex with someone who has AIDS, not HIV, can you still get HIV? Sarah*

Yes. People who have AIDS are infected with the HIV virus. This means they can pass HIV on to others.

AIDS happens after someone has had HIV for many years. In AIDS, the immune system is severely weakened. When someone gets HIV, that person can spread the infection to other people immediately. And if HIV develops into AIDS, the virus can spread to others.

HIV/AIDS spreads when infected blood or body fluids enter the body. This can happen:

• during sex
• through sharing needles for injecting drugs or tattooing

HIV/AIDS also can pass from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding.

To reduce your risk of getting HIV/AIDS if you are sexually active:

• Use a condom every time you have sex .
• Get tested for HIV and make sure all partners do too.
• Have fewer sexual partners.
• Get tested and treated for STDs having an STD increases the risk of HIV infection.
• Consider taking a medicine every day if you are at very high risk of getting infected .

It’s also important to:

• not inject drugs or share any kind of needle
• not share razors or other personal objects that may touch blood
• not touch anyone else’s blood from a cut or sore

*Names have been changed to protect user privacy.

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Lab Tests And Why They Are Important

Before you start treatment with HIV medicine , your health care provider will order several baseline lab tests. You may start treatment or be referred for treatment before the test results are in.

Your lab test results, along with your physical exam and other information you provide, will help you and your provider work together to manage your HIV care.

Your health care provider will repeat some of these lab tests as part of your ongoing HIV care to see how well your HIV medicine is working so that you can get the virus under control, protect your health, and prevent transmitting the virus to others.

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What To Expect Next

If you find out you are HIV-positive, its important to keep in mind the condition is treatable. Antiretroviral therapy is recommended for all people with HIV, regardless of how long theyve had the virus or how healthy they are. It works by lowering the amount of virus in the body to very low levels. This treatment can also slow the progression of the infection and protect the immune system.

Taking ART medications is vital to slowing the progression of HIV. Left untreated, HIV will progress to the second stage. During this stage, people may experience no symptoms at all. If no treatment is administered, an individual can stay in this stage for 10 to 15 years.

For people who have no symptoms of an acute HIV infection, it takes an average of seven years to proceed to AIDS.

Interpreting The Numberswhat Additional Information Needs To Be Provided

Some clients may see these numbers and think their risk of HIV transmission is low. Therefore, caution is needed when interpreting them. If these numbers are provided to clients, they should be accompanied by information that helps shed light on why the risk may be higher than it seems.

Transmission can occur after one exposure.

It is important to emphasize that a person could become infected from having unprotected sex once or a person could have unprotected sex many times and not become infected, regardless of how low or high the risk per exposure is.

A risk of 1% would mean that an average of one infection would occur if 100 HIV-negative people were exposed to HIV through a certain type of sex. It does not mean that a person needs to be exposed 100 times for HIV infection to occur.

These are estimates of average risk in the absence of biological factors that increase risk.

The numbers in the table above are rough estimates. They are averages and do not represent the risk from all exposures to HIV through a certain type of sex.

The risk of HIV transmission may be much higher than these averages if biological risk factors are present. For example, research shows that STIs and some vaginal conditions, such as bacterial vaginosis, can increase the risk of HIV transmission by up to 8 times.6,7,8 As a result, the risk of an HIV-negative woman becoming infected through unprotected receptive vaginal sex could be closer to 1% if she has a vaginal STI.

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Is It Safe For Children With Hiv To Receive Routine Immunizations

• MMR, or measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine, is safe to give to children with HIV, unless they have a severely weakened immune system.

• DTaP/Td vaccine is safe to give to infants and children with HIV.

• Hib and Hep B vaccines are safe to give to children with HIV.

• Hepatitis A and B vaccines are safe to give to HIV-positive children.

• VZIG should be considered for known HIV-positive children, depending on their immune status.

• A yearly influenza vaccine is recommended for children with HIV, as well as any individual living in the same household as a child with HIV. There are two types of influenza vaccine children and adults with HIV should receive the “shot” form of the vaccine–not the nasal spray form, as it contains a live virus. Pneumococcal vaccine can be safely administered to age-appropriate HIV-infected children.

Always consult with your child’s doctor regarding immunizations for an HIV-infected child.

People Unaware Of Having Hiv

Its estimated that about 1 in 7 people living with HIV in the United States dont know they have the virus.

People who are unaware that they have HIV are less likely to take precautions to avoid transmission to other people. They also likely dont take medications to suppress the virus.

If you dont currently have HIV, you can prevent your chances of infection by:

• discussing HIV and STIs with your partner before engaging in sexual activity
• using a barrier method every time you engage in sexual activity
• avoiding sharing needles
• talking with your doctor about postexposure prophylaxis if you may have been exposed to HIV in the past 72 hours
• getting tested for other STIs regularly or before engaging in sexual activity with a new partner

If you do have HIV, you can prevent transmitting it to others by:

• discussing HIV and STIs with your partner before engaging in sexual activity
• using a barrier method every time you engage in sexual activity
• taking your medications as prescribed
• avoiding sharing needles or drug injection equipment
• having your viral load tested regularly as recommended by your doctor

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How Long Does It Take To See The Signs Of Hiv

The signs and symptoms of HIV may first appear within two to four weeks of infection. The stage in which the symptoms appear is called the stage of acute HIV infection. The symptoms appear due to the resistance or fight of the immune system against HIV. In the initial stage, the virus multiplies rapidly and spreads throughout the body. It targets and destroys the CD4 cells . As a result, the level of HIV in the blood and the chances of transmission at this stage are very high. It is crucial to recognize the early signs and seek medical help, since early diagnosis and treatment of HIV gets the best results.

Questions To Ask Your Doctor

• Is there any sure way to avoid acquiring HIV?
• What is the best treatment for me?
• How can I avoid getting any infections that will make me very sick?
• How can I find support groups in my community?
• What diagnostic tests will you run?
• How often will I need to see my doctor?
• Will there be any side effects to my treatment?
• How does this affect my plans for having a family?
• Is it safe for me to breastfeed my baby?
• Will using a condom keep my sex partners from acquiring HIV?
• Should I follow a special diet?

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Who Should Get Tested

The only way to know for sure whether you have HIV is to get tested. CDC recommends that everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 get tested for HIV at least once as part of routine health care. Knowing your HIV status gives you powerful information to help you take steps to keep you and your partner healthy. About 1 in 8 people in the United States who have HIV do not know they have it.

What Is Acute Hiv Infection

There are three stages of HIV infection:

• Stage 1:Acute HIVinfection
• Stage 2:Chronic HIV infection
• Stage 3:AIDS

Acute HIV infection is the first stage of the infection. Usually within two to four weeks of infection, two-thirds of those with HIV will experience flu-like symptoms. These symptoms may last for several days or even weeks. However, some people may experience no symptoms at all.

In this stage, there is a large amount of HIV in your blood, which is known as the viral load. Studies have noted incredibly high viral loads during the acute stage, meaning you are more contagious at this time.

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How To Tell If Symptoms Are Hiv

There are three types of HIV tests:

• An NAT involves drawing blood from a vein. It can tell if you have HIV or how much virus is present in your blood. While an NAT can detect HIV sooner than other types of tests, this test is very expensive and not routinely used for screening individuals unless they recently had a high-risk exposure, or a possible exposure and have early symptoms of HIV infection. This test takes several days for results to come back.
• An antigen/antibody test is recommended for testing done in labs and is now common in the United States. It involves drawing blood from a vein, and results take several days to come back. There is also a rapid antigen/antibody test available that is done with a finger prick and takes 30 minutes or less to get results.
• HIV antibody tests only look for antibodies to HIV in your blood or oral fluid. In general, antibody tests that use blood from a vein can detect HIV sooner after infection than tests done with blood from a finger prick or with oral fluid. Antibody tests can detect an HIV infection 23 to 90 days after exposure. Most rapid tests and the only currently approved HIV self-test are antibody tests. They take 20 minutes or less to provide results.

Keep in mind, any positive result would necessitate a second test to confirm it. The only test that would not require a second confirmatory test is the NAT.

How Is Hiv Transmitted Or Spread

The following are the means by which the HIV virus is spread:

• Vertical transmission. HIV can be spread to babies born to, or breastfed by, mothers infected with the virus.

• Sexual contact. In adults and adolescents, HIV is spread most commonly by sexual contact with an infected partner. The virus enters the body through the lining of the vagina, vulva, penis, rectum, or abraded or irritated tissues in the lining of the mouth through sexual activity.

• Blood contamination. HIV may also be spread through contact with infected blood. However, due to the screening of donated blood for evidence of HIV infection, the risk of acquiring HIV from blood transfusions is extremely low.

• Needles. HIV is frequently spread by sharing needles, syringes, or drug use equipment with someone who is infected with the virus. Transmission from patient to health care worker, or vice-versa, through accidental sticks with contaminated needles or other medical instruments, is rare.

No known cases of HIV/AIDS have been spread by the following:

• Saliva

• Malaise

• Enlarged lymph nodes

An HIV-infected child is usually diagnosed with AIDS when the immune system becomes severely damaged or other types of infections occur. As the immune system deteriorates, complications begin to develop. The following are some common complications, or symptoms, of the onset of AIDS. However, each child may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms may include:

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Nausea Vomiting And Diarrhea

In the early stages of infection, most people suffer from vomiting, diarrhea, and nausea for some time. These symptoms can be a result of HIV medication or opportunistic bacterial and fungal infections which tend to overcome the already weak immune system. Diarrhea that goes for a long time without responding to routine treatment can be a manifestation of HIV.

How Std Testing Works

Getting tested for STDs is usually a quick, simple and painless process. If youre concerned that you might have an STD, the best way to arrange an STD test is to get in touch with your primary care provider and let them know youd like to be tested.

Theres no need to feel embarrassed when asking for an STD test. Healthcare professionals are used to administering STD tests, and getting tested on a regular basis is part of being a healthy, sexually active adult not something that you should ever feel ashamed of.

Depending on your symptoms, your healthcare provider may request that you complete one or several of the following tests:

• Physical exam. Before administering other tests, your healthcare provider may look at the affected area to check for visible sores, rashes or other signs of infection.

• Urine test. For this test, youll need to provide a urine sample for analysis in a lab. This type of test is often used to detect chlamydia and gonorrhea.

• Blood test. For this test, a nurse or doctor will draw blood from your arm using a needle, or from a finger prick. Blood testing is used to detect a range of STDs, including hepatitis A, B and C, herpes, syphilis and HIV.

• Fluid sample. If you have open sores, your healthcare provider may take a sample from the sores to test for STDs.

• Cheek swab. In some cases, such as to test for HIV, your healthcare provider may rub a swab inside your cheek.

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Is Hiv/aids Different In Older Adults

A growing number of older people are living with HIV/AIDS. One reason is because improved treatments are helping people with the disease live longer. Nearly half of people living with HIV in the United States are age 50 and older. Many of them were diagnosed with HIV in their younger years. However, thousands of older people get HIV every year.

Older people are less likely than younger people to get tested, so they may not know they have HIV. Signs of HIV/AIDS can be mistaken for the aches and pains of normal aging. Older adults might be coping with other diseases and the aches and pains of normal aging, which can mask the signs of HIV/AIDS.

Some older people may feel ashamed or afraid of being tested. Plus, doctors do not always think to test older people for HIV. Some people may not have access to high-quality health facilities and services, which can limit their treatment options. By the time the older person is diagnosed, the virus may be in the late stages and more likely to progress to AIDS.

Remember, if you are at risk, get tested regularly for HIV.

For people who have HIV, it is important to start treatment as soon as possible after diagnosis. Treatment can help reduce the level of HIV in the blood to undetectable levels. When treatment makes HIV undetectable, the possibility of spreading the virus to a sexual partner becomes very low. This is known as treatment as prevention .

Who Should Consider Taking Pep

If you are HIV-negative and you think you may have been recently exposed to HIV, contact your health care provider immediately or go to an emergency room right away.

You may be prescribed PEP if you are HIV negative or don’t know your HIV status, and in the last 72 hours you:

• Think you may have been exposed to HIV during sex,
• Shared needles or drug preparation equipment, OR
• Were sexually assaulted

Your health care provider or emergency room doctor will help to decide whether PEP is right for you.

PEP may also be given to a health care worker after a possible exposure to HIV at work, for example, from a needlestick injury.

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