Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus that damages the cells in your immune system. Your immune system helps you fight infections and diseases.
Treatments for HIV infection work well to control the virus. With treatment, most people with HIV live a healthy life. They do not pass the virus on to sexual partners.
There is no cure for HIV.
HIV and AIDS
Without treatment HIV can lead to AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome).
AIDS is not a single condition. It is a group of illnesses that you can get with advanced, untreated HIV infection. These illnesses can be very serious and life threatening.
This is when the virus has severely damaged your immune system. You are no longer able to fight infections and diseases.
With early diagnosis and treatment, most people with HIV will never get AIDS.
AIDS cannot be transmitted from 1 person to another. Only the HIV virus can.
Early symptoms of HIV
You will most likely get a flu-like illness about 2 to 6 weeks after getting the virus. This happens in about 4 out of 5 people who get HIV.
You will have symptoms such as:
- a raised temperature (fever)
- a sore throat
- a rash
- tiredness
- joint pain
- muscle pain
- swollen glands
These symptoms usually last 1 to 2 weeks but can last longer. They are a sign that your immune system is trying to fight the virus.
Urgent advice: Get tested for HIV if:
- you think you've been exposed to the virus
Early symptoms of HIV are similar to symptoms of other conditions, such as flu. You may not have HIV.
Important
Take an HIV test if you have been at risk at any time in the past. Do this even if you do not have symptoms. Treatment can prevent later symptoms developing.
Later symptoms of HIV
If left untreated, later HIV symptoms may develop. This often happens slowly.
After early symptoms disappear, you may not have any more symptoms for up to 10 years. During this time you are likely to feel and appear well.
But the virus stays active in your body. Over the years it damages your immune system and eventually symptoms develop.
How long this takes varies from person to person. It can depend on things such as your general health and lifestyle.
Later symptoms may include:
- extreme tiredness (fatigue)
- rapid weight loss
- night sweats
- thrush that is very bad or keeps coming back - this can be oral thrush or vulvovaginal thrush
- mouth ulcers
How HIV can progress to AIDS
As your immune system becomes severely damaged, untreated HIV can develop into AIDS. You become vulnerable to opportunistic infections.
These are infections that take advantage of a weakened immune system.
Examples of opportunistic infections include cerebral toxoplasmosis and pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia.
Opportunistic infections can make you seriously ill. People with advanced HIV also have a higher risk of certain cancers.