Question
Is my CD4 count and viral load within the normal ranges?
12 October 2010. Related: All topics, CD4 and viral load.
I am currently on treatment my latest result were: viral load 29 and CD4 count 431 is this within accepteble ranges?
Answer
Thank you for your question.
Your results are very good. Once you are on treatment the most important thing to monitor is your viral load which should, wherever possible, remain under 50 copies/mL. Some people get the occassional ‘blip’ where the viral load goes up a little bit and then down again. This is nothing to worry about. Your viral load of 29 is very good.
Which treatments are you on? Have you experienced any side effects? When did you start treatment?
For more information on CD4 counts and viral load please follow this link
Because your viral load is so low (less than 40 copies/mL) this means your treatment is still working well. You do not have to worry for example about drug resistance and whether the drugs have stopped working.
CD4 responses vary a lot between different people. Without knowing your CD4 count when you started it is difficult to comment on your current results. However it is common for people who start with very low CD4 counts to sometimes take a year or two to get back to 200 or higher. In general, a slow steady increase is better that a larger quick response.
Unless your CD4 count was much higher when you started treatment, you may be doing very well.
I have just received my results and my CD4 is 144 and viral load is less than 40. I started treatment last year around april and this is the second six month check up. How can you explain this cos i thought the CD4 will now be higher than this. Is anything that must be done? Should i be worried or what? pls explain.
Hi Fernando,
Although some people do experience difficult side effects this is not the case for everybody. The majority of people are able to stick to their medication without discontinuing.
Have you stopped taking your treatment? If you have, did you discuss this with your doctor? It’s important to talk to your doctor if you have stopped taking your ARVs so that you can try to find a combination that you are able to take that will still work for you. Please read this page about treatment breaks for more info.
Taking HIV treatment is quite a difficult process because one develops side effects eg gaining overweight. In most cases people discontinue the treatment.
Let me know what are the chances of getting on track after a 6 month long discontinuance of the treatment?
I am on regimen 1 and my CD4count is 4hundred and something, it used to be 7hundred and something. When ever I go out clubbing I don’t drink my pills, so obviously skipping most of the times without drinking my pills. Then when I do drink them I get sick. Can I drink my pills while I drink alcohol or should I completely stop drinking alcohol.
Hi,
Has your CD4 count dropped since you started treatment or was this before you started?
It is very important to take your treatment everyday. Missing doses means that you are at risk of developing drug resistance which would mean your treatment would stop working and you could be at risk of getting ill. How often do you miss one of your doses?
If you have been regularly skipping doses it is important to talk to your doctor about this and check your viral load (the level of HIV in your body) to make sure that your treatment is working properly.
It is OK to take your treatment together with alcohol. There are no interactions between any ARVs and alcohol.
When you say you get sick when taking your pills is this everytime, or only after drinking alcohol?
PLease see this link about adherence for more info.
Hi James,
I’m sorry to hear about your recent diagnosis. Do you have any support to help you cope with this?
Treatment is usually recommended to anybody with a CD4 count under 350 so it is important to think about starting quite soon. Your CD4 count is still high enough that, unless you have any symptoms of HIV you can take a few weeks to learn about treatment without this being too urgent. Please see our combination therapy guide for more information about CD4 count and viral load results.
my cd4 count is 290 and my viral load is 33,000 and i havent been put on meds yet bc i just found out is that bad or good
Hi Zanele,
CD4 cells are part of your immune system. These are the cells that HIV uses to replicate in and over time without treatment HIV causes your CD4 count to decrease. A ‘normal’ CD4 count for somebody without HIV is between 400-600. In most countries HIV+ people start treatment with ARVs when their CD4 count is 350 or below.
Your viral load is a measure of how much HIV is in your blood. Whereas the CD4 count is used to help to decide when to start treatment the viral load is more often used to check that treatment is working. This is because HIV treatment stops the virus replicating, and if treatment is working well your viral load should go below 50 (this is called being ‘undetectable’). Sometimes if your viral load is very high- over 100,000 this is a reason to start treatment even if your CD4 count is still above 350.
Your CD4 count and viral load are both good, and it’s unlikely that your doctor would want you to start treatment yet. There are different guidelines in different countries though, so it’s important to ask your doctor when s/he would expect you to start treatment. You can read about CD4 counts and guidelines in our Introduction to combination therapy.
You asked about precautions. In terms of your health it’s important to look after yourself generally (eat well, exercise, try to stop smoking if you do) but there are no other medications or supplements that work against HIV. If you’re worried about transmission of HIV have a look at our transmission guide.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Hi
Hve tested positive my cd4 count is 427 and viral load is 10 295. Pls explain what it means and the precautions I should take if any.