Friday, October 12, 2012

Email 66: Sick with Cold and Cough


Hi Pozziepinoy,

Gusto ko lng po itanong kung normal lang ba sa atin na mga positive na sipunin at ubuhin? Actualy 5 days na yata akong may mild na  sipon, tapos my ubo na may plema, nag wowory lng po ako if baka bumababa nanaman ang immune system ko? Two months na po akong nag tatake ng ARV's at bactrim once a day at azythromicyn once 1 week. now lang ulit ako nagka sipon at ubo pero wala pong fever? anu po need kong gawin?
Thank you po

XXX

TRANSLATION:

I would like to ask if it's normal for us positives to have colds and cough? Actually it has been 5 days that I have a mild cold with productive cough. I am worrying that my immune system will go down again. I've been taking ARV's and bactrim once a day and azithromycin once a week. It is only now that I am experiencing a cold and cough with no fever. What should I do?

 Thank you.

 XXX
POZZIEPINOY'S REPLY

 Hi XXX,

 Thank you for your email.

 Like any other normal individuals, it is normal for us to get sick once in a while even when taking ARV's. However, the consequence of being sick is that our body will once again combat the new illness plus HIV. Also, we have to put in our minds that HIV replicates when there is an infection so we really have to be careful in getting sick until our immune system has already rebounded to safe levels.

 You mentioned that you are still on prophylaxis ( cotrimoxazole or bactrim and azithromycin) which may indicate (correct me if I am wrong) that your immune system is still weak. My best advice then is for you to call your doctor immediately and ask what steps you need to take. It's better to be proactive than be reactive at this stage of your treatment. Although you are taking ARV's and prophylaxis at the same time, it really doesn't mean that you can't get infections anymore so I really suggest for you to call your doctor. Our HIV doctors know what is best for us so we should believe in their wisdom in dealing with other infections beside HIV.

 I hope I was able to answer your question. Feel free to email me again if you have other concerns.
Stay healthy,
Pozziepinoy


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