Symptoms of HIV in men in the early stages: first signs after infection

HIV infection today is the most dangerous of all viral diseases. It is especially insidious because in the first months there are practically no symptoms. Men are more susceptible to contracting the virus, as they often neglect contraception.

Statistics show that after an AIDS diagnosis, 50% of men die within a year. With timely treatment, life expectancy can be extended to 5 years. That is why early diagnosis of the disease is so important. Let's look at how HIV infection and AIDS manifest themselves at different stages, and what symptoms men have.

Methods of infection

The main ways of contracting HIV infection are:

Unprotected sexual contact with a carrier of the infection.
Transfusion of contaminated donor blood.
Use of non-sterile medical instruments, including needles.
Contact with an open wound of infected blood or other body fluid of the patient.
The virus is transmitted from an infected mother to her newborn baby.

Candidate of Medical Sciences Evgeniy Olegovich Komarovsky talks about the routes of transmission of the virus:

Since the virus can be transmitted through biological fluids of the human body, there is a possibility of contracting HIV through oral sex. Especially if ejaculation occurred directly into the mouth, where there are wounds.

Due to the fact that HIV is transmitted at the moment of contact of mucous membranes, on which microtraumas can appear, you can become infected with it even if ejaculation does not occur.

At the same time, a man cannot become infected with HIV:

When shaking hands.
After a mosquito bite.
In contact with animals.

Through food, water and household items.
By airborne droplets (coughing, sneezing).
Through a half-smoked cigarette.

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Provoking factors for the development of the disease in men (risk groups).

There is a category of people who have a very high risk of developing the disease, which is determined by the person’s normal behavior.

The likelihood may increase if men:

have a large number of sexual relations without condoms;
use reusable needles and untreated syringes;
carry out sexual contacts with owners of sexually transmitted infections.

According to world statistics, men make up two-thirds of all carriers of the virus. First of all, the risk group includes drug addicts, people of unconventional orientation, and those who have promiscuous sexual relations.

This list also includes persons who have been exposed to infected blood transfusions. Every man needs to know the first symptoms of this terrible disease.

Features of infection in men

The first symptoms of HIV in men may appear just a few weeks after infection, or they may not be felt for many years. It depends on the individual characteristics of the male body.

After HIV enters a man's body, it begins to destroy T-lymphocytes - cells that the immune system produces to protect against foreign microorganisms. Moreover, in some men, the virus, after entering the cell, can remain in an inactive state for up to 10 years, without revealing itself in any way.

Virus action scheme

Due to the fact that the man’s immune system is affected by the virus, it is unable to resist even the simplest infections. When a man is diagnosed with HIV, he is prescribed a course of immunomodulators that will help improve his general condition and eliminate its main manifestations. Additionally, the patient is prescribed medications that help normalize metabolism and stabilize the nervous system.

Combination of HIV with syphilis, hepatitis and other STDs

With HIV, other sexually transmitted infections can also occur. This is due to a decrease in the body’s protective functions. Let's look at some types of diseases that can be associated with the human immunodeficiency virus.

Hepatitis

This disease develops with liver damage. Many patients with HIV are carriers of hepatitis. It should be noted that infection can occur not only with hepatitis B, C, but also D. Sometimes, hepatitis may not manifest itself. The most common symptoms that appear are:

Yellowness of the skin, sclera of the eyes;
Pain in the joints and gastrointestinal tract;
Malaise.

In severe cases of the disease, liver cirrhosis may occur.

Syphilis

With HIV infection, the symptoms of syphilis have mild clinical manifestations. That is why the disease is quite difficult to diagnose.

Primary syphilis in HIV is characterized by large sizes of chancre. Soreness and pus discharge from the formation appear. In this case, damage to nearby healthy tissues is observed. If neurosyphilis develops with HIV status, then damage to the nervous system will occur quickly.

Secondary syphilis will appear as rashes located throughout the body. Such rapid development of the disease depends on the production of antibodies to Treponema pallidum.

How quickly do symptoms go away with treatment?

For the treatment of concomitant diseases in HIV, it is recommended to use several drugs. This allows you to actively influence the cause of the infection. It is very important to observe the frequency of administration and duration of treatment. The effectiveness of the therapy will depend on this. As you know, there is no cure for HIV, but in order to avoid the risk of complications, you should undergo therapy.

Timing of HIV manifestation

If a man carefully monitors the condition of his body, then after a few weeks he can notice the first signs of the disease, which include general malaise. However, many do not attach much importance to this symptom, assuming that it is a common cold. 1 month after infection, fever may accompany weakness. As a rule, it does not exceed 38 degrees. After 2 months, HIV enters the asymptomatic stage. This is due to the fact that the disease is often detected at later stages. How long it will take for HIV to make itself known depends on the individual characteristics of a particular man’s body. Sometimes it appears after a few months, and sometimes after a few years.

Venereologist Ekaterina Vyacheslavovna Makarova will tell you when to take tests to detect the disease:

How to find out about infection? The only way is to take a blood test. But one analysis may not be enough, since the incubation period of the disease, during which the virus is not detected in the laboratory, can be up to 6 months.

Diagnostic methods

It is impossible to confirm or deny the presence of HIV infection in the body based solely on the symptoms that occur. However, the clinical picture may be an alarm bell:

treatment-resistant stool disorder for more than two months;
loss of body weight for no apparent reason - as a rule, in a short period of time a man loses up to 10% of body weight;
prolonged fever for no particular reason;
development of a dangerous oncological disease - Kaposi's sarcoma at a young age;
dermatological diseases localized in various places.

Infection can be confirmed using two tests: a confirmatory test, which evaluates not only the presence of the virus, but also the viral load, and a screening test.

Main stages of development

There are 4 main stages in the development of HIV in a man.

Table 1. Stages of development of HIV infection

Stage	Characteristic
Latent form (incubation period)	As a rule, its duration is from 1 to 3 months, but sometimes it can be up to 1 year. At this time, the virus actively spreads in the man’s body, affecting his immune system.
Onset of symptoms	At this stage, the synthesis of HIV antibodies occurs - the body’s reaction to the introduction of the virus.
Resulting consequences	Now HIV makes itself felt with characteristic symptoms. Moreover, all changes in a man’s body are irreversible.
Final stage	At this stage, HIV turns into AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). AIDS is always fatal.

Main signs of HIV infection in men

Once the first signs of AIDS in men disappear, other symptoms usually do not appear for several months or years. During this incubation period, the virus replicates inside your body and begins to weaken your immune system. You won't feel or look sick, but the virus will usually get stronger. During this period, the virus is especially active and men have a risk of contracting HIV to another person, 100% infection rate. This is why early diagnosis, even if you feel well, is so important.

Symptoms of infection

Signs of HIV infection in a man and a woman who has contracted it are usually no different. After about 1-2 months, a man may feel the following symptoms:

Changes in body temperature (uncharacteristic jumps).
Constant chills.
Very often a man notices muscle weakness or soreness.
Enlarged lymph nodes.
Headache.
Increased sweating, especially at night.

Indigestion (frequent diarrhea).
Sore throat.
Skin rash.
Signs of thrush and mouth ulcers.
Pain in the joint area.
Impaired concentration.

An alarming symptom of HIV in a man is a rash on the body.

Table 2. Nature of the rash

Types of rash	Characteristic
Petechial	On the body you can notice barely noticeable points that appear as a result of minor hemorrhages.
Urticarial	This rash is also called urticaria.
Papular	Papules without purulent formations can be noted on the surface of the skin.

In addition, the man constantly feels tired, and his physical activity decreases. Possible onset of depression. During palpation, the doctor will note an increase in the size of the liver.

It is important that when such signs of HIV infection appear in a man, immediately consult a doctor, undergo the necessary examination and begin treatment with antiviral drugs, without which life expectancy is significantly reduced.

As HIV develops in the body, symptoms and initial manifestations intensify. There is a constant aching pain in the joint area. After the lymph nodes are damaged, the infection begins to affect the internal organs (liver, spleen). Due to the inflammatory process in the esophagus, it is difficult for a man to eat.

The video describes the symptoms of the disease in men:

Over time, the symptoms of HIV in men in the early stages gradually disappear and the disease enters the latent phase. It is characterized by the absence of the main signs of the disease, despite the fact that organ destruction still occurs. The maximum period of the latent phase is no more than 10 years.

At the third stage of the disease, internal organs are seriously affected. The immune system is no longer able to resist virus cells. Symptoms of HIV are accompanied by signs of other emerging pathologies or even oncological processes. The following concomitant diseases are typical for men diagnosed with HIV:

Oral thrush.
Herpes.
Lichen.
Seborrhea.
Fungus on the hands or feet.

Moreover, the symptoms of these diseases in men manifest themselves acutely, which is not typical for healthy people. Any disease can cause various complications; it cannot be cured for a long period of time.

First category doctor Anna Viktorovna Maslennikova talks about the stages of the disease:

The last stage of HIV, when it turns into AIDS, is characterized by severe damage to internal organs. The immune system is not able to fight even a minor cold, so a man can die from absolutely any disease. The disease cannot be cured. The main therapy in this case will be aimed at relieving symptoms and alleviating the man’s condition. At this stage, the following concomitant pathologies may occur:

Oncological neoplasms.
Sarcoma.
Cryptococcosis.
Pneumonia.
Tuberculosis.

In addition to the destruction of internal organs, the man suffers brain damage.

Main symptoms at an early stage

People often wonder how many days it takes for HIV to appear in men after sexual intercourse without using barrier methods of contraception. According to doctors, the very first signs of HIV disease in men appear 10 days after infection. When the first symptoms appear, it is important to immediately contact specialists in order to begin a course of antiretroviral therapy as quickly as possible.

The very first signs of infection in the early stages include:

slight, barely noticeable lethargy, drowsiness, apathy, relaxation, which is accepted by a person as one of the symptoms of the flu or a cold;
HIV symptoms in men after a month include severe weakness even from performing simple everyday activities;
in the initial stage of development of the disease, the temperature also rises to subfebrile levels, it persists for several days.

After this, the first manifestations of HIV infection subside; this can last for several months or several years. This period is the most successful for starting treatment.

Do not delude yourself that the body has overcome the disease on its own if there are no symptoms. HIV symptoms in men remain in the body after infection, gradually progressing. After the asymptomatic period ends, other primary symptoms of HIV appear. At this stage, the virus becomes completely incurable.

Those men who are attentive to their health can feel the first signs of illness within a week. Usually there is malaise, constant weakness and signs of a cold. A month after infection, body temperature increases, usually low-grade.

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Treatment

It is impossible to cure the disease in men. However, if HIV is detected at the initial stages of development (regardless of the presence of symptoms) and treatment is started on time, then the patient has a chance to prolong his life.

As therapy, the patient is prescribed antiviral drugs, the main task of which is to slow down the development of the disease. In addition, he needs to take immunostimulating medications. Additionally, symptoms of concomitant pathologies are treated.

How to detect HIV at home?

There are two types of tests to determine HIV in the blood:

Identification of proteins;
Determination of antibodies against the virus.

There are also three types of results:

When markers are detected, the result is positive;
Negative;
Doubtful.

Recently, in more developed countries, rapid tests that you can do yourself at home. Their duration is up to 15 minutes.

Algorithm:

Using a special spatula, which is included with the test, you need to carefully take a scraping from the oral mucosa;
Next, put it in a container with a substance that will help determine the result.

Unfortunately, in our country there are no such tests yet and it is possible to check for HIV only in a clinic. The analysis is given under a special code and helps to hide all information about the patient.

Probability of infection after 1 contact

There is an opinion that the chance of becoming infected with HIV after 1 contact with an infected partner is zero. However, it is not. Of course, for men this percentage is lower than for women, but it exists. The risk of infection increases if the partner has any damage (erosion) on the genitals, diseases that can be transmitted sexually or during menstruation.

If we talk about anal sex, then the risk of infection increases. This is due to the fact that the mucous membrane can be easily injured and may be covered with small cracks through which the virus certainly enters the body. This is due to the fact that a large number of infected men have non-traditional sexual orientation.

Forecast

When a man receives news of this disease, he certainly begins to worry about how long he can live with such a diagnosis. Everyone knows that the life expectancy of HIV-infected people is shorter than that of the healthy population.

Thanks to science and new antiretroviral drugs, the patient’s life expectancy is steadily increasing. Scientists from Denmark have stated that the life expectancy of HIV-infected people can increase by 35 years. “As a result, people with HIV can plan for an adequate future,” says Dr. Nikolai Lohse.

In 1995, with the use of antiretroviral therapy for sick people 25 years of age, life expectancy was 21 years, for the healthy generation 52 years.

After 10 years, this figure increased from 21 to 33 years. If we do not count people sick with hepatitis B and C, then life expectancy will already be close to 39 years.

We can happily conclude that HIV is not a death sentence. People suffering from this disease can lead completely healthy and successful lives.

The rights of HIV-positive individuals do not differ in any way from fellow citizens; the state has no right to infringe on them due to the disease. Already today, with properly selected therapy, HIV-infected men have every chance to feel like established units of society.

What is HIV?

HIV virus: micro photo
HIV is the human immunodeficiency virus. It cannot reproduce on its own in the body, so it penetrates human immune cells and uses their DNA to build copies of itself.

It is known that there are people whose immune cells are resistant to the penetration of the immunodeficiency virus: it cannot pass through their membrane, due to a special mutation of these cells. Among European residents, approximately 1% of the population has such a mutation, and another 10-15% of Europeans are partially resistant to the virus.

Currently, research in the field of HIV treatment is also aimed at studying these mutations.

The virus is unstable in the external environment. It is easily destroyed by boiling and disinfection solutions. Alcohol is the most accessible antiseptic in everyday life. Therefore, many are interested in whether alcohol kills the HIV virus. The answer is yes, but only outside the body: when exposed to 70o alcohol, the virus quickly dies on various surfaces. If a person with HIV infection drinks ethyl alcohol, he, alas, will not be cured of the virus.

Viruses are the smallest microorganisms, so for a long time it was unknown what the HIV virus looks like under a microscope. They were able to discern the pathogen only in 1983, when the theory of HIV infection was already ready. And in 1988, high-precision electron microscopy made it possible to sequentially image the affected cells and, finally, the virus itself.

Risk of HIV infection

HIV infection is possible through blood (transfusion) during sexual intercourse. HIV spreads quickly among people who are addicted to drugs (through injection with shared syringes). When the virus enters the body, HIV attacks the entire immune system. The disease is fatal in 60-80% of cases.

The danger of HIV lies in the fact that the disease does not have pronounced symptoms and is similar to the course of other pathologies (for example, the common cold). The sooner the immunodeficiency virus is detected in the body and therapy is started, the easier the treatment will be. HIV infection can lead to the development of AIDS, which contributes to the occurrence of cancer.

If you are immunodeficient, a mild cold can cause serious health consequences. During HIV infection, intestinal infections often develop, which become quite difficult to cure. Often the patient’s body is attacked by a fungal infection: candidiasis affects the genitals, intestines, and oral cavity.

Oral lesions

AIDS cannot be completely cured. Doctors can only slow down the development of the virus in the body. Treatment is carried out with antiviral drugs. Preventive measures include the use of contraception during sexual intercourse, the use of disposable needles and medical devices. After casual sexual intercourse, it is better to get tested for HIV. A blood test is recommended for all young couples when planning children.

Conclusion

Thus, HIV infection is a dangerous disease that affects the body's immune system. Immunodeficiency leads to the fact that a person cannot resist the common cold and is not protected from the most common diseases. The first signs of infection, which appear in the second week after infection, include: temperature fluctuations, headaches, swollen lymph nodes, the appearance of a rash, diarrhea, vomiting, sudden weight loss, apathy, and weakness.

Next comes a period of calm when the virus spreads throughout the body. Infection occurs through blood during unprotected sexual intercourse. In most cases, HIV leads to the development of AIDS and death. The presence of infection can only be confirmed by taking a blood test to detect the presence of antibodies to HIV disease. If the result is positive, treatment must be started immediately. To avoid infection, you need to use contraception during sexual intercourse, avoid casual relationships, and lead a healthy lifestyle.

When should the infection appear?

From the moment of infection until the first indirect signs of infection appear, it can take from one to two months. The first sign of HIV infection in men is weakness and malaise. However, any person who feels unwell is more likely to refer to a cold or fatigue than to HIV infection. After another month, two people may experience temperature fluctuations, with the body temperature being within the subfebrile range (37-38 degrees). After two months, the asymptomatic stage begins; the duration of this stage can vary from a couple of months to several years. Patients are given a false impression of recovery, only after a while can it be detected again.

Against the background of external well-being, the virus actively multiplies inside the cells of the human immune system. This is the basis of tests for determining HIV infection in the blood. There are both rapid tests for detecting virus markers in a drop of blood, and more extensive ones (PCR).

A blood test for HIV can be done by anyone of their own free will or on the direction of a doctor. In modern HIV and AIDS control centers it is possible to do such a test anonymously.

General terms

Many men are interested in whether HIV can be asymptomatic. Doctors answer this question in the affirmative. After a certain period of time, symptoms appear, it is impossible to say for sure, since each organism is individual, the immune system fights differently. Sometimes the first signs are visible after a week, and sometimes only after months or even years.

A sore throat
Pain in lymph nodes
Muscle pain
Skin rashes
Cough
Aches in the joints
Night sweats
Sore throat
Fever
Increased fatigue
Diarrhea
Weight loss
Tendency to infectious diseases
Weakness
Enlarged lymph nodes

HIV in men is a dangerous viral disease that currently cannot be completely cured. Has several routes of infection. It predominantly affects men of reproductive age. Transmission from mother to fetus is possible. In this case, the symptoms of the disease will appear in childhood.

HIV in men progresses somewhat differently than in women, although the manifestation of the disease is largely identical. Infection usually occurs through sexual contact with a sick person, but there are also other ways:

during transfusion of donor blood;
when using used and unsterilized medical needles (drug needles) or other medical instruments. The likelihood of infection depends on the state of the immune system - upon contact with any body fluids of a virus carrier, it is quite high. In addition, the likelihood of infection increases in cases where a healthy person has open wound surfaces - abrasions, cuts, etc., where blood or other fluids of an infected person can get in.

Scientists have not yet established what determines the likelihood of people becoming infected with the virus, but some people do not get sick even if the virus enters their body. But unfortunately, this happens quite rarely.

Prevention

Preventive methods are aimed at reducing HIV infection among the population.

Prevention methods:

Have a permanent sexual partner;
Use a condom;
Use disposable medical instruments;
After visiting the street, wash your hands;
If you are not confident in your partner, then you need to be tested for HIV;
Conduct HIV prevention in drug addicts;
Do not reuse syringes and needles;
HIV-infected mothers are prohibited from breastfeeding their children.

How does infection occur?

Before you worry about the presence of an infection in the body, you need to find out how it occurs in order to protect yourself from possible infection. The main ways are during surgery, when instruments were not sterilized well enough, or during sex without the use of barrier contraceptives. It is worth noting that it is impossible to acquire the HIV virus through everyday contact or through kissing or touching.

Despite the low percentage, the likelihood of infection is still present if a man uses the same toothbrush as a carrier of the virus. Please note that among those infected with this disease, there are a lot of drug addicts. This is explained by the use of one syringe for administering drugs. You can also prick yourself with a needle in public recreational areas.

Routes of HIV transmission

Carefully! Do not walk barefoot on the beach; be careful when sitting on a bench or lawn in a park. It is possible that a used needle may remain there.

It has been established that the virus is dangerous for men at any age, but homosexuals during an active sexual life (21-45 years) are mainly at risk. At the same time, the risk of the virus entering the body can be increased if stressful situations are regularly observed or the man is simultaneously sick with additional ailments. For many years after acquiring the virus, a man may look completely healthy, but at the same time be a carrier of the virus.

How HIV is not transmitted

How HIV manifests itself in women: the first signs

Signs of HIV in women in the early stages are practically indistinguishable from those in men. These include:

Unreasonable and persistent increase in body temperature;
Feeling of weakness, general malaise;
Enlarged lymph nodes;
Long-term course of colds;
Weight loss with a normal diet;
Persistent exacerbation of herpes.

When the incubation period ends and signs of HIV infection appear in a woman, the initial stage can be mistaken for ordinary fatigue and seasonal decreased immunity. This is very dangerous - without knowing about the disease, a woman can infect her sexual partner.

If HIV symptoms develop, the first signs in women affect the reproductive system.

Often, when women become infected with HIV, the nature of their discharge changes. Due to low immunity, thrush develops - infection of the vaginal mucosa by Candida fungi. In this case, the leucorrhoea becomes abundant, acquires a characteristic sour odor and a cheesy consistency.

Another characteristic symptom is gardnerellosis, or bacterial vaginosis. With it, the discharge becomes yellowish-green and smells unpleasantly of rotten fish.

It is important to remember that any signs of HIV infection in women are a reason not only to get tested, but also to be checked for pregnancy. If a woman is still sick, this will help her begin treatment and not infect her unborn child.

The first signs and manifestations of HIV infection, characteristic only of women

In women with HIV, symptoms affect the reproductive system. In particular, menstruation with HIV can occur with disturbances:

Irregular menstruation;
Algodismenorrhea - severe pain during menstruation;
Heavy menstrual bleeding;
Amenorrhea is the cessation of menstruation.

These first signs of HIV in women are associated with the effect of the virus on the body’s hormonal system. Weakened immunity and pathogens of various diseases lead to endocrine disruptions.

Incubation period of HIV infection

The incubation period is the stage during which the disease does not express itself in any way. At this time, the microorganism multiplies intensively, but does not yet have time to cause serious damage to a person.

It is believed that at the latent stage, many infectious diseases are not contagious, but this rule does not apply to HIV. During the incubation period, HIV infection in men and women is transmitted in the same way as during other periods of the disease.

The incubation period of HIV infection ranges from three months to six months.

What determines how long the incubation period of HIV lasts?

The latent period of HIV may vary due to a person's general health level and external conditions.

The following factors may influence the incubation period of HIV:

health level at the time of infection;
presence of chronic diseases;
human standard of living;
alcohol and drug abuse;
poor nutrition and lack of vitamins.

Another important factor is age: the incubation period for AIDS in an adult will be longer than in a child.

The fact is that a person’s immunity develops as they grow older. In childhood, the protective system is still imperfect, and the child is more vulnerable to any infectious diseases. In children, the immunodeficiency virus destroys what has not yet had time to form. Because of this, HIV progresses faster in them than in adults, and without treatment more often leads to death. Read about the peculiarities of the course of HIV in children in a special material.

In older people, the latent stage of the disease is also often shorter than in younger people. The immune system wears out with age, as does the body as a whole. Therefore, HIV-infected people in old age are more susceptible to the negative effects of the virus. They reduce the development of immunodeficiency and the incubation period of HIV.

However, the incubation period for HIV is long. Therefore, to the question “can HIV manifest itself in a week?” The answer is clear - no. The virus is not able to weaken the immune system so quickly.

It is almost impossible for both men and women to detect HIV infection during the incubation period: there are no symptoms at this time.

What affects HIV?

Symptoms of the disease with HIV appear due to the fact that the immunodeficiency virus attacks the immune system in the human body.

Human blood contains special cells - T4 lymphocytes. They are responsible for recognizing and destroying harmful microorganisms. It is lymphocytes that are the target for the virus: it integrates into cells and multiplies using their DNA, and then the cells die.

What causes the primary signs of the disease? The number of lymphocytes in HIV gradually decreases to critical levels, and the person becomes defenseless against infections and internal disorders in his own body. As a result, even a small amount of microbes can cause a serious illness in such a person.

Because of this, the first signs of HIV infection appear in infected men and women - persistent infectious diseases.

Diagnostics

HIV diagnostic methods:

The most common method for diagnosing HIV is enzyme immunoassay . Three months after infection, antibodies to HIV are produced in the patient’s blood, which are detected by this research technique;
Immunoblot. This technique allows you to detect antibodies to HIV. As a result, you can get a negative, positive and questionable examination result;
Polymerase chain reaction . It allows you to detect the DNA and RNA of the virus. It will also allow you to find out what type of virus, the stage of the disease and the approximate period of infection;
Express test. It is done in an emergency when urgent surgery is required. It does not require much time or complexity and gives a high result during the examination. But in the future, this technique requires confirmation by more in-depth tests.

HIV treatment

Timely treatment of the human immunodeficiency virus allows you to live fully for many years, although it is impossible to completely recover from HIV and AIDS. Primary manifestations of infection should prompt you to seek help, since only correctly prescribed treatment will help delay the timing of death.

Professionals advise waiting out the incubation period, which lasts from three weeks to three months, and then getting tested for HIV infection. The primary manifestations of the disease will allow the doctor to determine how many drugs will have to be prescribed to the infected person, and what the treatment period will be.

The complex includes drugs:

stopping the spread of viral cells;
killing cancer cells;
suppressing the development of fungal and infectious diseases.

A man should clarify how long the insidious disease will have to be treated in order to prepare for long-term treatment.
The same complex can be treated for several months, but sometimes it is necessary to add additional drugs that stimulate the immune system and protective functions of the human body. There is no vaccine against HIV, so it is not possible to treat the disease, but you can prescribe a complex of several medications that complement each other.

The appearance of secondary diseases of the third stage

At this stage, rapid damage to all internal organs occurs. The course of the virus can be complicated by an additional infection or the development of an oncological process. At this stage, the disease does not remain for more than two years, since the last stage - AIDS - begins. But first, the following pathological manifestations begin to activate in the virus carrier:

herpes infection;
seborrheic manifestations;
thrush in the mouth;
fungal infection;
the occurrence of herpes zoster.

The infection with the above infection occurs with complications and with thrush in the mouth, severe bleeding of the gums may be observed. The body becomes so weakened that pharyngitis or bronchitis drags on for several months.

Symptoms of acute HIV infection

Asymptomatic course of the disease (latent stage)

The latent stage of HIV can last from three years to several decades. This largely depends on the state of a person’s immunity at the time he became infected with the virus. During this period of time, any signs of illness are completely absent. Even the first symptoms of HIV in men recede. The only thing you can pay attention to is slightly enlarged lymph nodes. This fact is usually revealed during a medical examination or when visiting a doctor about another disease.

However, at the latent stage, the virus can already be detected using laboratory tests. If you donate blood for HIV, the test will show the presence of antibodies to the virus in it. Often it is at this stage that HIV infection is detected, and this happens by chance when undergoing mandatory tests. It is quite natural that a man at this stage is also contagious. But if he knows about his diagnosis, then the danger to others is minimized.

HIV Prevention Measures

In order not to reap the harmful consequences of a terrible disease, you must constantly adhere to basic precautions. Preventive actions to prevent HIV infection and, as a consequence, AIDS include:

care when choosing sexual partners;
use of personal protective equipment (condoms);
use of disposable syringes;
Availability of your own hygiene products: razors, nail scissors, blades.

Until now, no effective medicine against HIV infection has been obtained. Despite this, there are many drugs that can slow down the spread of the dangerous virus. With timely diagnosis and properly selected therapy, it is possible to maintain the immune system of an infected person for many years.

Men, unlike women, are more susceptible to HIV infection, which is explained by their neglect of contraception. The difficulty is that the virus does not manifest itself for a long time, penetrating into a new environment. Therefore, any atypical changes in well-being should be a reason to consult a doctor and undergo appropriate diagnostics.

Treatment and prevention

Having figured out how to test yourself for HIV, we move on to the most exciting issue - treatment and prevention of this disease.
In the first stages of infection, it is possible to get rid of the disease. Timely medical intervention can suppress the virus and remove it from the body.

Therefore, if you are alerted by contact with a suspicious liquid

, be it blood, semen or vaginal discharge, get tested immediately.

The answer to the question of how to treat HIV in the earliest stages is simple - pills, injections and regular monitoring by a doctor.

After the patient has passed the incubation period, all that can be done is to carry out preventive measures that will prolong his life. In many cases, this method allows HIV-infected people to live to a ripe old age, give birth to children and lead a full-fledged lifestyle. However, the procedure is very expensive, moreover, it contains a lot of nuances.

The most important of them is that the virus mutates if it is suppressed for a long time with the same medicine. Therefore, the composition of drugs must constantly change so that the disease does not adapt and progress.

Important!

Taking medications should be accompanied by a healthy lifestyle, giving up bad habits and a proper balanced diet.

Clinic of the disease

There are four stages of infection development:

The first stage is the incubation period. The latent form of the disease lasts from one to three months, however, in some cases this period can last up to a year or even more. Once in the body, the immunodeficiency virus is initially aimed at destroying the human defense system. But at the initial stage, until the body begins to produce HIV antibodies, immunity remains intact.
As the disease enters the second stage, the first signs of infection are observed. The body begins to react to the virus and produces antibodies to fight it.
The third stage is characterized by the presence of obvious symptoms of HIV infection.
The fourth stage is AIDS.

In order not to miss the moment of infection and to take the necessary measures in time, you should undergo special laboratory tests to detect HIV antibodies in the blood.

The first time, tests are taken two weeks after the suspected infection, the second time - after three to six months. Such periods are determined by the so-called serological window, that is, the period of time when the infection is not detected, even if the virus is already in the human body.