Initial HIV Infection (1 to 4 weeks after infection)
Early symptoms of HIV often mimic mononucleosis, and you will experience swelling of the lymph nodes, headache, fever, loss of appetite, sweating, and sore throat. Often times this is mistaken as having the flu or another viral-type infection. Some people develop skin rashes on the chest, abdomen or back. If you get a blood tests at this early stage it will not show anything as the antibodies to HIV have not developed yet. This stage in almost all people dissipates due to the ability of the immune system to fight off the initial infection.
Seroconversion (4+ weeks after infection)
Seroconversion is the point antibodies to HIV can be detected in your blood. After this people will often lead a fairly healthy period where no symptoms are present. It will take no more then five years before a person develops physical signs of HIV infection. The time this takes depends upon the amount of CD4 cells in the individuals' body but age and health factors can effect this time line as well.
Early stages of HIV and Common Infections
As the immune system fails your body can no longer fight off infections that a healthy, intact immune system can suppress. When your CD4 count becomes 300 or lower more aggressive illness's start to take hold. The most common are listed below...
Thrush is a condition of the mouth caused by a fungus called Candida albicans usually indicated by white patches on the walls of the mouth, gums, and tongue. People also suffer from a burning sensation in the mouth and an altered sense of taste.
Thrush is easily treated with prescription drugs such as clotrimazole troches and nystatin.
Anyone who has had chicken pox as a child still has the Herpes zoster virus. Immune deficiencies and stress tend to be the two main factors that cause the reactivation of the virus leading to shingles. Shingles look like a red rash that normally appear in a specific area and may look like a band around the body. Talk to your doctor about your options and ask about Oral acyclovir.
Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) tends to become a chronic condition in HIV/AIDS patients. As the immune system fails, the frequency of HSV along with the severity of the symptoms tend to increase. Please consult with your doctor for any treatments for this illness, and understand no cures are known.
Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpora (ITP) is caused by a person developing antibodies that attack platelets, these are the cells in the blood stream that let blood clot. This condition can only be detected with a blood test and if you have it you will experience excessive bruising and bleeding. Talk to your doctor about what treatment would work best for you.
One of the most common causes of death with AIDS is Pneumococcal Pneumonia. It is an infection of the lung and can sometimes be prevented by the use of Pneumococcal vaccine. Please consult your doctor about this possibility.
Advancing from HIV to AIDS
As your immune system begins to fail completely your body will become vulnerable to many illness's you would normally be able to fend off. In the end this is what will kill you, not AIDS but some other illness. When you CD4 Count dips below 200 you are in the later stages of the virus. The two most common infections are pneumocystic pneumonia and kaposi's sarcoma. Others will be listed below.
A parasite called pneumocystis carinii is responsible for Pneumocystic Pneumonia (PCP). Since PCP is the most common infection a prson with AIDS deals with. This is why prophylaxis or drugs used to prevent infecton, are so important. You will find the symptoms of PCP are very similar to that of pneumococcal pneumonia; fever, respiratory problems, etc. Consult your doctor for the best treatments, but as of 2012 your best options will include Trimethoprim, sulfmethoxazole, Dapsone, or Pentamadine.
Kaposi's Sarcoma is a condition in which tumors of the blood vessels develop. The cause of this is still unknown but Kaposi's sarcoma is a malignancy originating in the endothelial or lymphatic cells. These tumors can appear any place on the body and look like a purple or black spot. The only other symptom is small non-painful lesions, with a red, brown or purple color. The common treatments are radiotherapy, cryotherapy, or intralesional injections with vinblastine and chemotherapy.
Tuberculosis (Mycobacterium Tuberculosis (MTB) can occur in both early and late stages of the HIV/AIDS. The main problem with this disease is over time it will develop into multiple-drug resistant strains in the body, making it challenging to treat.
Mycobacterium Avium Complex (MAC) usually occurs in HIV patients with CD4 counts below 100. This complex is marked by fatigue, chills, night sweats, fever, weight loss, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. Due to its rather non-specific symptoms, MAC is difficult to diagnose. A combination of drugs is used to treat MAC infections. These include; Clarithomycin, Ethambutol, Clofazamine, Amikacin, Azithromycin, Ciprofloxin and Rifampin. MAC treatments are for the rest of an individual’s life.
HIV-Related Lymphoma or "tumors of the lymph glands", is treated with radiation or chemotherapy.
Toxoplasmosis Encephalitis is caused by a parasite, Toxoplasmosis Gondii, commonly found in cat feces and uncooked meat. This parasite causes an infection in the brain leading to neurological impairment, seizures, headaches, fevers, lethargy, and confusion. Uncoordinated walking and loss of balance may also occur, these latter two symptoms are the two most common symptoms. Treatment for toxoplasmosis will continue for the rest of an individual’s life and includes Sulfadiazine or Clindamycin and/or Pyrimethamine.
About 90% of AIDS patients suffer from (CMV) Cytomegalovirus Infection which is a mono-like illness. Since CMV is located in the blood, it is distributed to all parts of the body, causing infections in many different organs. Infections in the eye (retinitis; inflammation of the eye) are common along with lung infections leading to pneumonia. Current medications to deal with this infection are gangciclovir and foscarnet.
Cryptococcus is a fungus found in soil and can grow in different areas of the body. The most serious and lethal site of infection is in the brain. The symptoms for a cryptococcus infection are: fatigue, fever, nausea and vomiting. Amphotericin B with or without flucystine (5FU) is an effective medication for this fungus. Once stabilized, the patient is treated with fluconazole for life.
Cryptosporidium is most commonly contracted from contaminated drinking water. The tell tale signs of cryptosporidium is diarrhea and weight loss. There are no currently available effective treatments for this disease.
Transmission
People infected with HIV can look healthy, making it hard to tell who has HIV and who doesn't. These infected individuals can still transmit HIV through any form of unprotected sexual contact. HIV has been observed in ALL bodily fluids, however, only blood and sexual fluids have been observed to transmit HIV. Therefore, HIV is spread through unprotected oral sex, anal or vaginal sexual intercourse or the sharing of needles or syringes with an infected person. Women infected with HIV can pass the virus to their babies during pregnancy, birth, and breast-feeding.
Since 1985 careful screening and laboratory testing of all blood donations has been performed to prevent someone from being infected by receiving a blood transfusions from someone HIV positive. To date this practice has made it almost impossible for a person to be infected in this manner.
Latex condoms have been shown to help prevent HIV infection, but you must use a condom correctly every time you have any type of sexual contact. Plastic or polyurethane condoms are the only recommended condom to use for this. Condoms made of lambskin will not offer very good protection against HIV. If you plan to have any piercing done or get a tattoo, make sure you go to a qualified professional who uses brand-new or sterile equipment. Responsible technicians will explain their safety measures so don't be afraid to asking questions.
Is there a Cure?
To date only Timothy Ray Brown of San Francisco, California has been identified as "cured" this was done with a very risky bone marrow transplant from another person who was naturally immune to the HIV. Doctors have found that possibly as much as 1% of the human population is naturally immune to HIV. This is because their white blood cells lack the cell door aids uses to infect and destroy them.
For this to work you must first find a person who is both, the same blood type as you, geneticlly compatible, naturally immune, and willing to undergo the surgery. Once complete and if your body does not reject the new bone marrow, your immune system will upgrade to the new white blood cells.
This information was even sent world wide over MSN a few years ago. Last we have heard on this was "it will take doctors at least 10 years before they can even begin to refine this practice enough to use regularly." In short, it appears to be a working cure but it is so risky and the materials so scarce we are probably still 30 years away from seeing this become routine.
Out side of the cure above that is 30 year away or more, there is no 100% effective treatment for AIDS or HIV. Though Earvin “Magic” Johnson has used alternative medicine to boost his immune system, he still carries the virus. For the none millionairs out there other effective life prolonging medicines have been created to help in combating HIV and the opportunistic infections that can take hold. Please consult a physician to understand more about possible treatments and the options that are open to you and remember the internet is a great tool to find information, but research everything and bring it to your doctor before you believe it.
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