Question
Could my husband have been HIV positive for years without realising it?
22 February 2012. Related: All topics, HIV testing, Newly diagnosed, Sero different couples.
My husband has just tested hiv positive. About 4 years ago he began losing weight, urinating for much longer, feeling tired and weak, when we went to the doctor he was diagnosed with having diabetes. At that time he did not get tested for HIV.
Could it be that he was HIV positive at the time as well and we were just under the impression that he was diabetic only?
His CD4 count is now 576. He used to keep fit by gyming a lot, Could this have helped him keep his CD 4 count higher.
Answer
It is easily possible that your husband could have been HIV positive for many years. There is no way to know this now but there is a wide range of individual response to HIV.
Some people keep a CD4 count above 500 without needing treatment for 5 or 10 years. For others, their CD4 count can fall more quickly needing earlier treatment.
Unfortunately many doctors do not routinely offer patients HIV testing, especially if they don;t think they might be in a high risk group. This often leads to late diagnosis. In this case it is lucky that your husband has been diagnosed early enough to get the most benefit from the latest treatment.
The gym is unlikely to have affected his CD4 count. It will have kept him more healthy, but this is not directly linked to this part of the immune system.
For more info on treatment see this guide to combination therapy.
Hi Amanda,
I’m sorry to hear how unwell your partner is. When did he start treatment? A CD4 count of 7 is very low, but HIV treatment can still work well with low CD4 counts. It is important that he tells his doctor about any symptoms and he should be monitored carefully at the start of treatment. Starting with a very low CD4 count can cause some infections, such as TB or CMV to activate. This is called Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome (IRIS).
You can read more about starting treatment with low CD4 counts in our introduction to combination therapy. Please let me know how he is getting on, and if you have any questions!
My Partner has been HIV+ for ten years now , his cd4 is 7, yes 7, he has started treatment but is very very poorly. He is tired all the time, losing weight, has loss of appetite, i could go on. is it likely he had AIDS and will not recover with treatment?