who shouldn't take hiv treatment

What are the treatment options for HIV?

The treatment for HIV is called antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART involves taking a combination of HIV medicines (called an HIV treatment regimen) every day. ART is recommended for everyone who has HIV. ART can’t cure HIV, but HIV medicines help people with HIV live longer, healthier lives. ART also reduces the risk of HIV transmission.

What should I know before starting an HIV treatment regimen?

Before starting an HIV treatment regimen, tell your health care provider if you have any issues that might make it hard for you to follow an HIV treatment regimen. For example, people who have difficulty swallowing pills or people who do not have health insurance may find it hard to stick to an HIV treatment regimen.

Can I take other medicines if I have had HIV?

HIV medicine is recommended for all people with HIV, regardless of how long they’ve had the virus or how healthy they are. Talk to your health care provider about any medical conditions you may have or any other medicines you are taking.

Who develops the guidelines for HIV/AIDS treatment?

The federally approved medical practice guidelines for HIV/AIDS are developed by panels of experts in HIV care. More information about the panels can be found in each set of guidelines. The guidelines are available in multiple formats. The brief versions of the guidelines are compilations of the panels’ treatment recommendations and tables.

Is HIV medication harmful?

HIV medicines also reduce the risk of HIV transmission. But HIV medicines can sometimes cause side effects. Most side effects from HIV medicines are manageable, but a few can be serious. Overall, the benefits of HIV medicines far outweigh the risk of side effects.

Why should patients with HIV who are taking antiretroviral therapy be advised to avoid taking a proton pump inhibitor?

A new study demonstrates that long-term use of PPIs may be particularly dangerous for patients who have HIV. HIV damages the intestinal mucosa, causing permeability. This permeability allows bacteria to escape from the gut and migrate to other organs, leading to increased inflammation.

Can a patient refuse HIV treatment?

The right to refuse medical treatment is grounded within the common law right to self-autonomy. This right is protected by the common law doctrine of informed consent, permitting a patient to make an informed choice, if competent to do so, to accept or forgo medical treatment.

How long can you survive with HIV with treatment?

A 2017 study in the journal AIDS found that the additional life expectancy for people with HIV at age 20 during the early monotherapy era was 11.8 years. However, that number rose to 54.9 years for the most recent combination antiretroviral era.

Can I take vitamin C while on ARVs?

John's wort, vitamin C, zinc sulfate, and multivitamins were all found to significantly decrease the levels of selected antiretrovirals and should be avoided in patients taking these antiretrovirals.

Can I take multivitamins with ARVs?

For patients who require ARVs, multivitamin supplementation may serve as an adjunctive therapy to potentially enhance quality of life. In addition, reducing the risk of depression and improving quality of life among HIV-positive patients may positively impact utilization of ARVs.

Does a health care professional have the right to refuse to participate in approved procedures explain?

Health-care professionals currently have the right to conscientiously object to any procedure that they deem as morally illicit or that, in their opinion, could harm the patient. However, the right of conscientious refusal in medicine is currently under severe scrutiny.

What is HIV treatment?

HIV treatment (antiretroviral therapy or ART) involves taking medicine as prescribed by a health care provider. HIV treatment reduces the amount of...

When should I start HIV treatment?

Start HIV treatment as soon as possible after diagnosis. All people with HIV should take HIV treatment, no matter how long they’ve had HIV or how h...

What if I delay HIV treatment?

If you delay treatment, HIV will continue to harm your immune system. Delaying treatment will put you at higher risk for transmitting HIV to your p...

Are there different types of HIV treatment?

There are two types of HIV treatment: pills and shots. Pills are recommended for people who are just starting HIV treatment. There are many FDA-app...

What are HIV treatment shots?

HIV treatment shots are long-acting injections used to treat people with HIV. The shots are given by your health care provider and require routine...

Can I switch my HIV treatment from pills to shots?

Talk to your health care provider about changing your HIV treatment plan. Shots may be right for you if you are an adult with HIV who has an undete...

What are the benefits of taking my HIV treatment as prescribed?

HIV treatment reduces the amount of HIV in the blood (viral load). Taking your HIV medicine as prescribed will help keep your viral load low. HIV t...

Does HIV treatment cause side effects?

HIV treatment can cause side effects in some people. However, not everyone experiences side effects. The most common side effects are Nausea and vo...

What should I do if I’m thinking about having a baby?

Let your health care provider know if you or your partner is pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant. They will determine the right type of HIV...

Can I take birth control while on HIV treatment?

You can use any method of birth control to prevent pregnancy. However, some HIV treatment may make hormone-based birth control less effective. Talk...

What is the treatment for HIV called?

The treatment for HIV is called antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART involves taking a combination of HIV medicines (called an HIV treatment regimen) every day. ART is recommended for everyone who has HIV. People with HIV should start taking HIV medicines as soon as possible.

Why is it important to have less HIV?

Having less HIV in the body gives the immune system a chance to recover and produce more CD4 cells.

How does HIV treatment affect the body?

By reducing the amount of HIV in the body, HIV medicines also reduce the risk of HIV transmission. A main goal of HIV treatment is to reduce a person’s viral load to an undetectable level. An undetectable viral load means that the level of HIV in the blood is too low to be detected by a viral load test.

How many classes of HIV are there?

There are many HIV medicines available for HIV regimens. The HIV medicines are grouped into seven drug classes according to how they fight HIV. The choice of an HIV regimen depends on a person's individual needs.

How long after HIV infection can you start taking a drug?

(Early HIV infection is the period up to 6 months after infection with HIV.)

Can HIV be treated with ART?

People with HIV should start taking HIV medicines as soon as possible. ART can’t cure HIV, but HIV medicines help people with HIV live longer, healthier lives. ART also reduces the risk of HIV transmission. A main goal of HIV treatment is to reduce a person’s viral load to an undetectable level.

Can HIV medications interact with other HIV medications?

HIV medicines can interact with other HIV medicines in an HIV regimen or with other medicines a person is taking . Health care providers carefully consider potential drug interactions before recommending an HIV regimen.

What is the treatment for HIV?

HIV treatment involves taking medicines that slow the progression of the virus in your body. HIV is a type of virus called a retrovirus, and the combination of drugs used to treat it is called antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART is recommended for all people living with HIV, regardless of how long they’ve had the virus or how healthy they are.

Why do you prescribe HIV?

Your health care provider may prescribe medicines to prevent certain infections. HIV treatment is most likely to be successful when you know what to expect and are committed to taking your medicines exactly as prescribed.

What is drug resistance in HIV?

What Is HIV Drug Resistance? Drug resistance can be a cause of treatment failure for people living with HIV. As HIV multiplies in the body, it sometimes mutates (changes form) and produces variations of itself. Variations of HIV that develop while a person is taking ART can lead to drug-resistant strains of HIV.

How long do HIV side effects last?

Some side effects can occur once you start a medicine and may only last a few days or weeks.

How soon can you start ART for HIV?

Treatment guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommend that a person living with HIV begin ART as soon as possible after diagnosis. Starting ART slows the progression of HIV and can keep you healthy for many years.

Is HIV treatment a prevention?

There is also a major prevention benefit. People living with HIV who take HIV medication daily as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load have effectively no risk of sexually transmitting HIV to their HIV-negative partners. This is called treatment as prevention.

Can HIV be drug resistant?

A person can initially be infected with drug-resistant HIV or develop drug-resistant HIV after starting HIV medicines. Drug-resistant HIV also can spread from person to person. Drug-resistance testing identifies which, if any, HIV medicines won’t be effective against your specific strain of HIV.

How to stay healthy with HIV?

Getting and keeping an undetectable viral load is the best thing you can do to stay healthy. Helps protect your partners. If you take HIV medication every day, exactly as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load, you have effectively no risk of transmitting HIV to an HIV-negative partner through sex.

Why is it important to take HIV medication?

Taking your HIV medication daily is also important because skipping doses makes it easier for HIV to change form, causing your medication to stop working. This is called drug resistance. HIV can become resistant to your medication and to similar medications that you have not yet taken.

What is it called when HIV is low?

Allows the HIV medication to reduce the amount of HIV in your body (also called the viral load) to a very low level. This is called viral suppression. If the viral load is so low that it doesn’t show up in a standard lab test, this is called having an undetectable viral load.

How does HIV medication work?

Taking your HIV medication daily as prescribed provides many benefits. Among them, it: 1 Allows the HIV medication to reduce the amount of HIV in your body (also called the viral load) to a very low level. This is called viral suppression. If the viral load is so low that it doesn’t show up in a standard lab test, this is called having an undetectable viral load. Getting and keeping an undetectable viral load is the best thing you can do to stay healthy. 2 Helps protect your partners. If you take HIV medication every day, exactly as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load, you have effectively no risk of transmitting HIV to an HIV-negative partner through sex. This is called Treatment as Prevention

What to do if you miss a lot of medication?

If you find you miss a lot of doses, talk to your health care provider or pharmacist about ways to help you remember your medicines. You and your health care provider may even decide to change your treatment regimen to fit your health care needs and life situation, which may change over time.

Can you get sick from taking HIV medication?

Taking your HIV medication every day, exactly the way your health care provider tells you to will help keep your viral load low and your CD4 cell count high. If you skip doses, even now and then, you are giving HIV the chance to multiply rapidly. This could weaken your immune system, and you could become sick.

How does antiretroviral treatment help HIV?

Taking antiretroviral treatment daily as directed to achieve and maintain durably undetectable status stops HIV infection from progressing, helping people living with HIV stay healthy and live longer, while offering the benefit of preventing sexual transmission.

How long does it take for HIV to be undetectable?

A person is considered to have a “durably undetectable” viral load if their viral load remains undetectable for at least six months after their first undetectable test result.

How long does it take for HIV to transmit?

There is effectively no risk of sexual transmission of HIV when the partner living with HIV has achieved an undetectable viral load and then maintained it for at least six months. Most people living with HIV who start taking antiretroviral therapy daily as prescribed achieve an undetectable viral load within one to six months after beginning treatment.

Why is staying on treatment important?

Staying on treatment is crucial to keep the virus suppressed. NIAID-supported research has demonstrated that achieving and maintaining a “durably undetectable” viral load (the amount of HIV in the blood) not only preserves the health of the person living with HIV, but also prevents sexual transmission of the virus to an HIV-negative partner.

What is PREP in HIV?

Research shows that adhering to treatment often can improve with support from loving relationships and from the community. Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), in which an HIV-negative person takes antiretroviral medication to prevent infection, can be part of the conversation. Learn more about PrEP.

Does HIV prevent STIs?

Neither HIV treatment nor PrEP prevents other sexually transmitted infections, or STIs. Ways to reduce the risk of STIs include having both partners tested, limiting the number of sexual partners and using condoms. Vaccines are available to prevent some STIs, including hepatitis B and human papillomavirus (HPV).

Can antiretroviral drugs reduce HIV?

Development of antiretroviral drugs to treat HIV has turned what was once an almost always fatal infection into a manageable chronic condition. Daily antiretroviral therapy can reduce the amount of HIV in the blood to levels that are undetectable with standard tests.

What to do if you think you have HIV?

If you think you might have HIV infection, you're likely to start by seeing your family doctor. You may be referred to an infectious disease specialist — who additionally specializes in treating HIV / AIDS.

What is the treatment for HIV?

However, there are many medications that can control HIV and prevent complications. These medications are called antiretroviral therapy (ART). Everyone diagnosed with HIV should be started on ART, regardless of their stage of infection or complications.

What test can help determine if you have HIV?

If you receive a diagnosis of HIV / AIDS, several tests can help your doctor determine the stage of your disease and the best treatment, including: CD4 T cell count. CD4 T cells are white blood cells that are specifically targeted and destroyed by HIV. Even if you have no symptoms, HIV infection progresses to AIDS when your CD4 T cell count dips ...

What is HIV RNA?

Viral load (HIV RNA). This test measures the amount of virus in your blood. After starting HIV treatment the goal is to have an undetectable viral load. This significantly reduces your chances of opportunistic infection and other HIV -related complications.

How long does it take to get tested for HIV?

Most rapid HIV tests, including self-tests done at home, are antibody tests. Antibody tests can take three to 12 weeks after you're exposed to become positive. Nucleic acid tests (NATs). These tests look for the actual virus in your blood (viral load). They also involve blood drawn from a vein.

What are some examples of anti-HIV drugs?

Examples include efavirenz (Sustiva), rilpivirine (Edurant) and doravirine (Pifeltro).

How to diagnose HIV?

Diagnosis. HIV can be diagnosed through blood or saliva testing. Available tests include: Antigen/antibody tests. These tests usually involve drawing blood from a vein. Antigens are substances on the HIV virus itself and are usually detectable — a positive test — in the blood within a few weeks after exposure to HIV.

Treatment Considerations for Women

For the most part, HIV treatments for women are the same as for men. However, there are some special considerations related to treatment of HIV for women, including:

Treatment Considerations for Children and Adolescents

Because of their developing bodies, children and teens have to take different amounts, formulations, and combinations of anti-HIV drugs than adults.