Question
My viral load is 20, is this OK?
24 February 2017. Related: All topics, CD4 and viral load.
Been on Atripla for 6 years now ,
went for my regular test ,got my results today and CD4 is on 900 but VL is less than 20 copies am very worried as it is usually undetectable.
what can i do to make sure it gets undetectable again?
Answer
Thanks for getting a touch.
The classification for an undetectable viral load is less than 50 copies. Therefore, you are still undetectable because your viral load is less than this. You’re doing well, and have nothing to worry about.
Hi.
My viral load was 28 copies last month, and my boyfriend tested negative.
He’s due to test again after 6 weeks
Does this mean that I am not transmittable?
I am still taking my treatment very well.
Hi Xolani, this is nothing to worry about. 28 is still an excellent viral load and by most standards is still considered undetectable.
The number you got may be dependant on a change in test. Some tests may not register any value under 50, whereas others may read as low as 20. This would mean you would test undetectable on the first test, then read 28 on the second.
Also illness and vaccines can temporarily raise your viral load. Another factor is this could have been a ‘blip’. This is a temporary raise in viral load which is normal and then returns to its usual value: https://i-base.info/guides/changing/blips
A final explanation is that this was a lab error. If you were to be tested again it is likely that you’d go back to being undetectable.
Good day guys,
I am worried. 31 year old Male from South Africa.
I have been diagnosed with HIV since 2015.
My viral load for the past 4 years has always been Lower than detectable. I just got my recent test and it reads 28 copies per ml. I am shit worried about this.
Does it indicate that my medication is not as effective? Does it mean I am transmittable?
My name is Mariam, I have never fall sick and I have been taken the art since 20014 and my viral load is 20 percent but still am afraid because I sometimes take Guinness,
Hi Quinn,
If you’re asking if it’s OK to drink alcohol when you’re positive, the answer is yes.
Hi Dorothy,
As you’re in South Africa (i-base are in based in the UK) the best organisation to talk to is the Treatment Action Campaign: https://www.tac.org.za/ They should be able to give you the info that you need.
I am in a foreign country(SA) and need to get my treatment assistant back home (Zimbabwe)to collect my drugs for me. Now problem is that I had viral load test taken before i left home, now the clinic does not have my results and the Dr is refusing to write out a prescription for me. How do I go about this because I’m unable to travel back home. Can I walk into any laboratory and request to have the test done without any letter from the hospital or Dr? So i can send the results home and have my drugs collected for me.
Please assist i dont want to default on my treatment .
Hi Palesa,
It sounds like your HIV meds are working well, as your viral load was zero in August.
HIV can not be transmitted if your viral load is undetectable because you’ve been taking HIV treatment (ART). Please see this link to Undetectable = Untransmittable (U=U).
The chances of passing on HIV is zero if you’re undetectable because you continue to take ART. That’s even if you don’t use condoms.
What meds are you taking? How long have you been on ART? Please let us know.
Hi
My last viral load was on zero and that was in august 2020
My boyfriend and I always use a condom so now in september we didnt and his been HIV negative. What are the chances that I could have perhaps infected him? Is there any chance that my viral load increased and I infected him?
Hi Ntombekhaya,
I don’t think you are careless. You sound as though you’re being very strong. And you are right to be 100% sure that you can not infect your boyfriend. That’s because your viral load is undetectable.
Please read this other Q&A. It is a similar story to yours. Simon talks through the issues that are worrying you, and more.
Good luck, and best wishes to you.