Can you live a long life with HIV?
Thirty years ago, being diagnosed with HIV was considered a death sentence. Today, people with HIV can live long and healthy lives. That's why routine HIV screening is vital. Early detection and timely treatment are key to managing the virus, extending life expectancy, and reducing the risk of transmission.
Does HIV shorten your life?
During the first period, life expectancy for a 21-year-old with HIV was 38 years, compared to 60 for uninfected peers. By 2014, that gap narrowed dramatically: A 21-year-old with HIV could expect to live to 56, compared to age 65 for uninfected adults, according to the report.Jun 18, 2020
Can you live 20 years with HIV?
Specifically, by the end of the study, a 21 year old with HIV was predicted to live to the age of 77, whereas a 21 year old without HIV would live to the age of 86.Mar 13, 2020
Can you have HIV for 20 years and not know?
Most people experience a short flu-like illness 2 to 6 weeks after HIV infection, which lasts for a week or 2. After these symptoms disappear, HIV may not cause any symptoms for many years, although the virus continues to damage your immune system. This means many people with HIV do not know they're infected.
What is the difference between hiv1 and hiv2?
Two HIV virus types exist: HIV-1 is pandemic and aggressive, whereas HIV-2 is confined mainly to West Africa and less pathogenic. Despite the fact that it has been almost 40 years since the discovery of AIDS, there is still no cure or vaccine against HIV.Sep 5, 2019
What is HIV treatment?
HIV treatment involves taking medicine that reduces the amount of HIV in your body. HIV medicine is called antiretroviral therapy (ART). There is n...
When should I start treatment?
Start Treatment As Soon As Possible After Diagnosis HIV medicine is recommended for all people with HIV, regardless of how long they’ve had the vir...
What if I delay treatment?
HIV will continue to harm your immune system. This will put you at higher risk for developing AIDS. Learn more about AIDS and opportunistic infecti...
What are the benefits of taking my HIV medicine every day as prescribed?
Treatment Reduces the Amount of HIV in the Blood The amount of HIV in the blood is called viral load. Taking your HIV medicine as prescribed will h...
Does HIV medicine cause side effects?
HIV medicine can cause side effects in some people. However, not everyone experiences side effects. The most common side effects are Nausea and vom...
Will HIV treatment interfere with my hormone therapy?
There are no known drug interactions between HIV medicine and hormone therapy. Talk to your health care provider if you are worried about taking HI...
What if my treatment is not working?
Your health care provider may change your prescription. A change is not unusual because the same treatment does not affect everyone in the same way.
Sticking to my treatment plan is hard. How can I deal with the challenges?
Tell your health care provider right away if you’re having trouble sticking to your plan. Together you can identify the reasons you’re skipping med...
Factors That Reduce Life Expectancy
- Despite these advances, there are factors that can increase or decrease the life expectancy of people with HIV. These range from things we can control (such as taking our pills every day) to things we can't (such as race or poverty). These factors not only influence not only how a perso…
Losses in Life Years
- There is not always a straight line between how certain risk factors increase or decrease the life expectancy of someone with HIV. This is because people tend to have overlapping risk factors. Take, for example, Black men who have sex with men (MSM). The combination of racism, poverty, homophobia, and stigma—as well as the biological vulnerabilities to HIV—places Black MSM in t…
Summary
- Studies show that people living with HIV today can expect to live a near-normal life expectancy if treatment is started early and taken every day as prescribed. Even so, there are things that can undermine a person's ability to do so. This includes factors likes poverty, stigma, racism, and homophobia that can stand in a person's way of accessing consistent care and treatment. Othe…
A Word from Verywell
- As encouraging as the statistics are, it doesn't mean you have less to worry about when it comes to HIV. In the end, the choices you make will determine how well you respond to treatment and influence your individual risk of both HIV- and non-HIV-related illnesses. Ultimately, HIV is about more than just pills. You need to also take of your general health by eating a healthy diet, exercis…