I finally got my viral load result: 107,216 copies/mL. I have a high viral load! My test was done 5 days after I first took my initial ARV's so of course it would be high, right? I wonder what is my viral load now after a almost a month of taking ARV's.
Of course I have to research about it and this is what I found in the net again:
What is a Viral Load?
HIV attacks immune system cells called CD4 cells. HIV takes over these cells and turns them into virus factories that produce thousands of copies of HIV. As the virus grows, it damages or kills CD4 cells, weakening your immune system.
Viral load is the amount of HIV in your bloodstream. The higher the amount of HIV, the greater the risk of your immune system being damaged.
Viral load can be measured by two different lab tests: a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test or a branched DNA (bDNA) test. Both tests are accurate, but each has a different way to measure the amount of virus. It is best to stick with the same kind of test and not switch between the two or it will be difficult to compare results over time.
Viral load results are reported as copies of HIV in one milliliter of blood. The lower the number, the less virus there is in your blood. Numbers can range from about one million copies to as few as 50 copies. If you have less than 50 copies, your health care provider may tell you that your results are “undetectable.”
Being undetectable is the best result because it means your virus is under control. However, undetectable does not mean that you have been cured of HIV; it just means that there is not enough virus for the test to measure (below 50 copies).
How are Viral Load Results Used?
Viral load tests are an important tool to:
- Monitor HIV progression
While CD4 cell counts measure how healthy your immune system is today, viral load tests can help figure out whether you’re at risk for more immune damage in the near future. A viral load test tells you how active HIV is in your body. When compared over time, viral load results show if the amount of HIV in your bloodstream is higher or lower than it was before. The higher your viral load, the more active HIV is and the more likely you are to lose CD4 cells in the future.
- Measure how well HIV drugs are working
HIV drugs prevent the virus from making copies of itself (reproducing). When a combination of HIV drugs (regimen) is working, the viral load usually goes down within weeks of starting the drugs. If your viral load goes up while taking HIV drugs, you and your health care provider should take another viral load measurement. If that result is the same or higher, your drugs may not be working as well as they should. You should talk to your health care provider about switching drugs. You should also tell him or her if you are having any problems taking your HIV drugs on schedule. If you do not take your drugs correctly, it can cause problems that may lead to an increased viral load.
One goal of HIV treatment is to keep viral load levels as low as possible for as long as possible. This gives you the best chance of staying healthy. With effective HIV treatment regimens, viral load can be reduced to undetectable in many people. This is a great result. It means that your HIV medications are working and you should continue to take them. HIV is still in your body. If you stop taking your HIV drugs, the virus usually starts reproducing and your viral load will increase.
It is also important to know that even with an undetectable viral load you might still infect someone else with HIV if you share needles or have unprotected sex.
Starting Treatment
Viral load levels used to be used with CD4 cell counts to determine when you need treatment. Now guidelines put out by the US government recommend using CD4 cell count as the main way to determine when someone should start HIV treatment. However, the guidelines state that having a high viral (100,000 or more) is a reason to start treatment sooner rather than waiting.
When Should You Be Tested?
The US treatment guidelines also provide recommendations on when to have viral load tests:
1. If you are not on HIV treatment, have a viral load test
- When you start receiving HIV care
- Repeat test every three to six months
2. When you start treatment, have a viral load test
- When starting and two to eight weeks after treatment was started
- Repeat test every one to two months until viral load becomes undetectable
3. Once you are on a stable treatment regimen and undetectable, have a viral load test
- Every three to six months
4. When you change treatment, have a viral load test
- When changing and two to eight weeks after treatment was changed
- Repeat test every one to two months until viral load becomes undetectable
It is usually best not to get a viral load test for 3 to 4 weeks after you have an immunization shot or for 1 month after you have an infection. Your viral load could be higher than usual at these times.
How do HIV medicines affect the Viral Load?
After you start taking HIV medicines or change to different medicines, your viral load should decrease significantly in the first 1 to 2 months. This means the medicine is working. Your viral load should continue to decrease after that. If the medicines continue to work, your viral load can get so low that after 4 to 6 months of treatment it will be almost impossible to detect the HIV virus in your body. An undetectable level is good, but it does not mean that you are cured or that HIV is completely out of your body. It is important to note that not everyone's viral load gets this low.
How fast your viral load goes down depends on many things, including the following:
- How high it was to begin with
- How carefully you are taking your medicines
- Whether you were taking other HIV medicines previously
Special tests show that even people who have undetectable levels of HIV still have very small amounts of the virus in their blood. So even if your HIV level is undetectable, you need to get a viral load test several times a year. And it's important to remember that you could still infect other people if you have unsafe sex or if you share a needle.
So I want to know about my viral load count again. Although it's quite expensive (Php 6,000 in RITM), I want to take it again this coming December. Just for monitoring.
So I want to know about my viral load count again. Although it's quite expensive (Php 6,000 in RITM), I want to take it again this coming December. Just for monitoring.
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