Question
Can a low CD4 count define a late diagnosis?
22 March 2023. Related: All topics, CD4 and viral load, HIV transmission.
If CD4 count under 350 is a ‘late diagnosis’ – how long roughly is that average in years? for an example – on average if cell counts go down 50 cells per year and you start at 500 CD4 count – would that mean ‘roughly’ you would’ve had it for 3 years?
What defines ‘late diagnosis’? for an example – at least 2 years? etc?
Answer
Hi, how are you doing?
This is difficult to define. While being diagnosed with HIV and having a CD4 count lower than 350 is considered late, the progression of HIV will be different in everybody.
Some people will have their CD4 count below 350 within a year of HIV transmission and others can still be above after 10.
What you have said about 3 years being on average if you dropped 50/year would be correct. But it is impossible to say who would be average and who would respond to HIV in a more extreme way. For this reason individual people cannot have their exposure dated to pinpoint when they became positive.
Josh.
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