2010-10-13T11:27:00.000-07:00

HIV Symptoms

First let me give you the advice not to rely on any HIV symptoms to establish whether or not you are infected with the HIV virus asthese symptoms are similar to many other diseases symptoms. Especially don't rely on the early symptoms since they are flu-like symptoms. The only way to ensurewhether you are infected is to have a HIV test.

The symptoms of HIV vary from patient to patient and depend on the stage of the illness. In general there are 3 major stages ofinfection. These phases and the related symptoms are listed below in chronological order.

1.) Primary HIV Infection

fever
headache
pain in the limbs
sore throat
swollen lymph nodes
fatigue
loss of appetite
diarrhea
skin rash

Those early symptoms occur within the first weeks after the infection withthe virus took place. In this stage though the HIV antibodytest is ineffective because the infected person's immune system hasn't developed any antibodies to the virus yet. It usually takes about 3 months until antibodiesare detectable.

2.) Asymptomatic HIV Infection

In this phase, which can last 8 to 9 years, there are no symptoms at all. Nevertheless, in this period of time the HIV virus isreproducing itself and keeps destroying the immune cells.

3.) Symptomatic HIV Infection

long-lasting swollen lymph nodes
permanent night sweat
long-lasting diarrhea
persistent fever
severe weight loss
fungal diseases
dermatitis
dry cough and breathlessness
chronic fatigue

This stage lasts about 1 to 3 years. If other severe infections like pneumonia, neurological diseases or certain types of canceroccur in addition to these symptoms, then we are talking about full blown AIDS.

Find information & pictures of AIDS Symptoms here.