Course of HIV Infection

Most of the people do not know about their infection of HIV that when they got infected. However, an individual can learn about his/her infection as well as that in which stage he/ she has been. There are four stages of the HIV infection. These stages can be broken into different names. The course of HIV infection is the period that starts from the HIV infection to the development of AIDS. During this period the symptoms of HIV get developed. Some stages do not show the exact result of HIV testing. The result will be fake or negative though a person has been infected with HIV. In America, the average time of getting infected to developing AIDS in an individual who does not get treatment, is ten years. Out of this, one in five people will develop AIDS in five years or less. As well as one in twenty of the infected people will have normal CD4 count for ten to fifteen years. However it can be postponed if the proper treatment is taken place.

The HIV infection to AIDS period can be divided into four stages

• Primary or acute infection: flu like illness can be experienced.
• Asymptomatic stage: symptoms free stage, but result of HIV test is positive
• Early symptomatic or symptomatic: symptoms are mild at the beginning but later on become severe, HIV test is positive
• AIDS or advanced stage of HIV infection: final stage of HIV infection that allows HIV-co- infections.

So let us see the various stages that include in the course of HIV infection

Acute infection or primary infection

The first stage is acute infection. In this stage the virus enters in the body and hides in CD4 cells. It not only hides but starts to replicating itself in order to damage the immune system. The stage starts a soon after the HIV infection. This stage lasts for few weeks i.e. two to six weeks. The helper cells count decreases during this period but it can be go back to the normal level without any treatment. The symptoms may vary among infected people. Some of them will not have any symptoms; on the other hand some will face symptoms. However, most of the people face the signs like, flu-like symptoms, fever, extreme tiredness, swollen lymph nodes sore throat, rash, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, and muscle and joint aches. If a person undergoes with testing, the result will be negative in this stage. However, during this period an infected person is highly infectious. He/she can spread out the infection unknowingly to others. If an individual has a doubt regarding the infection, he/she should be tested after six months.

Asymptomatic HIV

This stage is known as symptom free stage as there are no symptoms found in infected person. Nevertheless, a person is infected with HIV, though he/she looks symptoms free. The only difference is that the level of HIV in blood is low. In spite of that the replicating process of the virus does not stop or cease. It is going on continuously. The HIV results will be positive in this period. The replication of the virus leads a person to the next stage of HIV infection.

Symptomatic HIV

The immune system is harshly damaged by the virus in this stage. Therefore, the symptoms appear to a person. At the starting the symptoms are soft or mild but later on they become harsh. This is the stage where opportunistic infection can be clearly seen. They attack on the immune system and damage it severely.

Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome AIDS

This is the advanced stage of HIV infection that is known as AIDS. The HIV infection totally changes itself into the deadly disease that is AIDS. The virus is in advanced stage of the development and even does not allow immune system to resist the simplest infections. In such a way body succumbs to AIDS.

Course of HIV infection begins from the HIV infection and ends with AIDS.