Table of Contents
ART involves taking a combination of HIV medicines (called an HIV treatment regimen) every day. ART is recommended for everyone who has HIV. ART cannot cure HIV, but HIV medicines help people with HIV live longer, healthier lives. ART also reduces the risk of HIV transmission.
What does ART do for HIV infections?
People with HIV should take medicine to treat HIV as soon as possible. HIV medicine is called antiretroviral therapy, or ART. If taken as prescribed, HIV medicine reduces the amount of HIV in the body (viral load) to a very low level, which keeps the immune system working and prevents illness.
What does antiretroviral therapy ART do for HIV?
Antiretroviral therapy works by preventing viral replication in the body. This allows the body’s immune system to recover. ART is a combination of drugs that act on the virus in different ways at different stages in its life cycle.
What viral load is undetectable?
When copies of HIV cannot be detected by standard viral load tests, an HIV-positive person is said to have an “undetectable viral load.” For most tests used clinically today, this means fewer than 50 copies of HIV per milliliter of blood (<50 copies/mL).
How do I keep my viral load down?
These steps may include: Taking antiretroviral medication regularly and as directed. When taken properly, antiretroviral medication reduces viral load, thus decreasing the risk of transmitting HIV to others. Getting tested for STIs. Using condoms during sex. Considering PrEP. Considering PEP. Getting tested regularly.
Is ART same as ARV?
ART stands for antiretroviral treatment. It is also called combination therapy or HIV treatment. What are ARVs? HIV drugs are called antiretrovirals (ARVs) because HIV is a type of virus called a retrovirus.
What happens if you take ARVs while negative?
“When a HIV-positive person is given ARVs, it boosts their immunity, but when a HIV-negative person takes them, it just undermines their immunity and interferes with their body organs.”Jul 5, 2020.
What is the difference between hiv1 and hiv2?
HIV-1 is the most common type of HIV and accounts for 95% of all infections, whereas HIV-2 is relatively uncommon and less infectious. HIV-2 is mainly concentrated in West Africa and the surrounding countries. HIV-2 is less fatal and progresses more slowly than HIV-1.
Can I test positive if my viral load is undetectable?
Antibodies are still present in individuals living with HIV—even people who have suppressed their viral load. That means people living with HIV will still test positive for HIV on an antibody HIV test even if their viral load is undetectable.
Can I infect someone if my viral load is undetectable?
Having an undetectable viral load does mean that there is not enough HIV in your body fluids to pass HIV on during sex. In other words, you are not infectious. For as long as your viral load stays undetectable, your chance of passing on HIV to a sexual partner is zero.
What is the name of the new ARV pill?
Early results from people taking a new antiretroviral medication called lenacapavir are promising. The long-acting drug is still at the research stage, but if the developers are able to pair it effectively with other drugs that also only needs to be taken twice a year, it could revolutionise HIV treatment.
How can you tell if someone is using Arvs?
The only way to tell if a person has HIV is through the HIV Antibody Test, which detects the presence of antibodies produced by the body in response to the HIV virus.
What drugs are in ART therapy?
Nucleoside/Nucleotide Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NRTIs) Abacavir, or ABC (Ziagen) Didanosine, or ddl (Videx) Emtricitabine, or FTC (Emtriva) Lamivudine, or 3TC (Epivir) Stavudine, or d4T (Zerit) Tenofovir alafenamide, or TAF (Vemlidy) Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, or TDF (Viread) Zidovudine or ZDV (Retrovir).
Does ARVs change body shape?
Lipodystrophy, or “lipo” for short, is a collection of body shape changes in people taking antiretroviral medications (ARVs). “Lipo” refers to fat, and “dystrophy” means bad growth. These changes include fat loss, fat deposits, and metabolic changes. Fat loss occurs in the arms, legs, or face (sunken cheeks).
How long can you stay undetectable?
A person’s viral load is considered “durably undetectable” when all viral load test results are undetectable for at least six months after their first undetectable test result. This means that most people will need to be on treatment for 7 to 12 months to have a durably undetectable viral load.
What will happen if I skip my ARV for 2 days?
Missing doses of HIV medicines can reduce their usefulness and increase the possibility of developing drug resistance, which makes certain HIV drugs lose their effectiveness. If you realize you have missed a dose, go ahead and take the medication as soon as you can, then take the next dose at your usual scheduled time.
What are the symptoms of high viral load?
As viral load increases, this high level of viral activity produces symptoms in up to 80% people. HIV can cause a range symptoms that include night sweats, fevers, weakness and tiredness and, more rarely, mouth ulcers. The immune system reacts to viral load in the blood by producing antibodies to fight HIV.01-Jan-2021.
Does ARVs make u gain weight?
Weight gain is a common side effect of antiretroviral therapy (ART). On average, people put on about 4 pounds during the first 2 years of their treatment. Most of that gain happens in the first year.
What is the best time to take ARVs?
Efavirenz needs to be taken 1-2 hours before you sleep, so you reduce side effects.
Can I take ARV in the morning?
Taking it at night means you are sleeping and avoiding some of the side effects. If you are on a combination that oddest contain efavirenz it should be ok to take int the morning. The important thing is that you continue to take your medication at the same time every day.
Can ARV cause your face to be dark?
This is a skin condition in which the skin reacts to exposure to the sun by turning darker in color. It’s most common in people of color, but anyone with HIV is susceptible to photodermatitis. If you’re taking medications to improve immune strength, you may have this reaction as a side effect.
