Treatment
HIV treatment (antiretroviral therapy or ART) involves taking medicine prescribed by a doctor. When taken as prescribed, HIV medicine can make the amount of virus in your body (viral load) so low that a test can't detect it (undetectable viral load).
Your doctor who is knowledgeable about HIV care will help you manage your care and treatment. Your doctor will
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Determine which HIV medicine is best for you
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Prescribe HIV medicine
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Monitor your progress and help you manage your health
Take your HIV medicine as prescribed
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This will help keep your viral load low and your CD4 count high.
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Take your HIV medicine exactly how your doctor tells you to—at specific times of the day, with or without certain kinds of food.
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Talk to your doctor if you have questions about when or how to take your medicine, or if you are experiencing any side effects.
Your doctor will use blood tests to monitor your HIV. These tests help your doctor make decisions about changes to your treatment:
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CD4 count​
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Your CD4 count is the number of CD4 cells you have in your blood. CD4 cells help your body combat infections. HIV attacks and lowers the number of CD4 cells in your blood.
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This makes it difficult for your body to fight infections. Your doctor will check your CD4 count every 3 to 6 months.
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Viral Load Test
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This test looks at the amount of HIV in your blood. When your viral load is high, you have more HIV in your body. This may mean your immune system is having difficulty fighting the virus or that your HIV medicine isn't working well.
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You should have a viral load test
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Every 4 to 6 months,
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Before you take a new HIV medicine, and
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Around 2 to 8 weeks after starting or changing medicine
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Benefits of treatment
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HIV treatment reduces the amount of HIV in the blood (viral load). If your viral load goes down after starting HIV treatment, that means treatment is working. Continue taking your HIV treatment as prescribed. If you miss your HIV treatment, even now and then, HIV can multiply rapidly in your body. This could weaken your immune system, and you could become sick.
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HIV treatment prevents transmission to others
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If you have an undetectable viral load, you will not transmit HIV through sex. This is also known as Undetectable = Untransmittable.
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Having an undetectable viral load likely reduces the risk of HIV transmission through sharing needles, syringes, or other injection equipment, but it's not known by how much.
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Having an undetectable viral load also prevents transmission through pregnancy, labor, and delivery.
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