Glossary

elite controller (EC) – if your viral load stays undetectable for more than five years without ART you are an elite controller.

Elite controllers also have a very good CD4 count (always above 500 cells/mm³) that stays at a similar level over many years.

Even with this good immune response, ART is still generally recommended in the long-term.

This is because over decades – some ECs have been undetectable for more than 20 years – there is a concern that low level HIV in different body compartments like the brain, might lead to accumulative serious damage that isn’t easy to detect until it is too late.

This is a real concern, though evidence is limited because of the rarity of ECs.

See: long-term slow progressor (LTSP)/long-term non-progessor (LTNP).

randomised controlled trial (RCT) – a type of research study that produces very high quality results. RCTs are often called gold-standard – ie the best evidence.

Study participants are randomly assigned to one of more study arm. One or more arms might use new drugs and another (the control arm) maybe uses the standard of care, or maybe a placebo.

See: randomise

opportunistic infection (OI) – an infection that occurs after your immune system has been damaged by HIV.

OI chapter of the training manual.

IDU – injecting drug user

in vitro – a study in a test tube. Literally, ‘in glass’.