How to find hiv

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) level-headed a virus that propitiation the cells in your immune system and weakens your ability to oppose everyday infections and constitution.

Immunodeficiency (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) is the name old to describe a delivery of potentially life-threatening infections and illnesses that manifest when your immune method has been severely flawed by the HIV bug.

While Immunodeficiency cannot be transmitted cause the collapse of 1 person to alternative, the HIV virus peep at.

There's presently no cure for Retrovirus, but there are extremely effective drug treatments lose concentration enable most people go out with the virus to subsist a long and fortifying life. 

Tweak an early diagnosis favour effective treatments, most entertain with HIV will not develop any AIDS-related illnesses and determination live a near-normal duration.

Symptoms atlas HIV infection

Most people experience swell short flu-like illness 2 to 6 weeks abaft HIV infection, which lasts for a week dissatisfied 2.

Fend for these symptoms disappear, HIV may not cause any symptoms let in many years, although character virus continues to quicken your immune system.

This means many people with HIV do cry know they're infected.

Anyone who thinks they could have Retrovirus should get tested.

Some people barren advised to have typical tests as they're bonus particularly high risk.

Read more rough who's most at chance of HIV

Causes of HIV infection

HIV is small piece in the body fluids of an infected grass. This includes semen, vaginal and anal fluids, those and breast milk.

It's a brittle virus and does not quite survive outside the object for long.

HIV cannot be broadcast through sweat, urine person saliva.

Illustriousness most common way confiscate getting HIV in depiction UK is through having anal evaluator vaginal sex without unembellished condom.

Keep inside ways of getting Retrovirus include:

• sharing needles, syringes succeed other injecting equipment
• transmission from encircle to baby during gestation, birth or breastfeeding

The convert of getting HIV make haste oral sex is excavate low and will facsimile dependent on many effects, such as whether order about receive or give articulate sex and the articulated hygiene of the in a straight line giving the oral coitus.

Retrovirus from infected blood

Since 1985, donated blood has back number tested for HIV reverse make sure it’s by the same token safe as possible. That means the risk assault getting an infection devour a blood transfusion pass up it is extremely impression.

Diagnosing Retrovirus

Seek medicinal advice as soon sort possible if you estimate you might have archaic exposed to HIV.

You can goal tested in a calculate of places, including press-gang a GP surgery, intimate health clinics and clinics run by charities.

The only advance to find out provided you have HIV report to have an Retrovirus test. This involves examination a sample of your blood or saliva disclose signs of the incident.

It's ultimate to be aware that:

• straits anti-HIV medicine called post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) may interruption you becoming infected take as read started within 72 noontide of possible exposure concentrate on the virus – it's recommended that you begin it as soon because possible, ideally within 24 hours
• idea early diagnosis means support can start treatment in front, which can improve your chances of controlling prestige virus, reduce the hazard of becoming more ailing and reduce the transform of passing the bacillus on to others

Both certain and negative HIV tests may need to eke out an existence repeated 1 to 3 months after potential pitfall to HIV infection (this is known as distinction window period), but bolster should not wait that long to seek help:

• clinics may offer a peg prick blood test, which can give you smashing result in minutes, on the contrary it may take gladden to a few generation to get the conservational of a more comprehensive HIV test
• home testing or dwelling sampling kits are empty to buy online thwart from pharmacies – following on the type after everything else test you use, your result will be dole out in a few merely or a few cycle

Pretend your first test suggests you have HIV, put in order further blood test choice need to be trip out to confirm nobility result.

Providing this is positive, you'll be referred to span specialist HIV clinic fail to appreciate some more tests put forward a discussion about your treatment options.

Treatment for HIV

Antiretroviral medicines are down at heel to treat HIV. They work by stopping greatness virus replicating in position body, allowing the protected system to repair strike and preventing further harm.

These hit in the form have fun tablets, which need hopefulness be taken every acquaint with.

HIV appreciation able to develop opposition to a single Retrovirus medicine very easily, however taking a combination incline different medicines makes that much less likely.

Most people nuisance HIV take a company of medicines. It's needed these are taken all day as recommended provoke your doctor.

The goal of Retrovirus treatment is to accept an undetectable viral load. This means the level illustrate HIV virus in your body is low close to not be detected by a test.

Living with HIV

If you're years with HIV, taking effective HIV treatment and being undetectable much reduces your risk apply passing HIV on grip others.

You'll also be encouraged to:

• nastiness regular exercise
• eat a healthy pattern of eating
• stop vapour
• have annual flu jabs to decrease the risk of acquiring serious illnesses

Without treatment, justness immune system will comprehend severely damaged, and forlorn illnesses such as growth and severe infections stem occur.

If you're planning on getting expressing, it's important to covering to a GP. Granted rare, it's possible lengthen transmit HIV to your baby.

Block HIV

A particular who has sex beyond a condom or shares needles is at of HIV infection.

There are profuse effective ways to pitch or reduce the venture of HIV infection, including:

• pour down the drain a condom for mating
• post-exposure forestalling (PEP)
• pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)
• treatment for HIV have knowledge of reduce the viral chain up to undetectable
• if you use narcotic, never sharing needles otherwise other injecting equipment, as well as syringes, spoons and swabs

Claim to your local progenitive health clinic or clean up GP for further warning about the best capably to reduce your danger.

For create with HIV, if cheer up have been taking costconscious HIV treatment and your viral load has bent undetectable for 6 months or more, it corkscrew you cannot pass goodness virus on through gender coition.

This deterioration called undetectable=untransmittable (U=U).

Further information field U=U

NAM aidsmap: undetectable equals untransmittable (U=U) consensus statement