Q and A

Question

Is my CD4 count and viral load within the normal ranges?

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

177 comments

  1. Robin Jakob

    These are good results! It is great that your viral load is so low, you CD4 count should slowly rise.

    You can find more information here:
    http://i-base.info/guides/starting/cd4-count-and-viral-load

  2. Fragile heart

    My CD4 is 286 and my viral load is less than 20, should I be worried? Are my meds working effectively? ? #Confused#

  3. Robin Jakob

    Hi,

    These are normal results for someone who is not on treatment.

    You can find more information about CD4 and viral load here:
    http://i-base.info/guides/starting/cd4-count-and-viral-load

  4. Baby girl

    Hi my CD4 count is 475 and viral load is 45577 is this okay?

  5. Simon Collins

    Hi Dimakatso

    Please see the information on CD4 and viral load in this guide:
    http://i-base.info/guides/starting

    If you want more detailed information after this, please see chapter 1 and 2 in this training handbook:
    http://i-base.info/ttfa/

  6. Dimakatso

    I want to know more about viral load and cd4 count

  7. Simon Collins

    Hi Cindi, continuing to monitor your results is important, but your CD4 count is still good and the viral load is very low. Your BF has been lucky to stay negative if you are not using condoms, but this risk may increase if your viral load becomes higher.

  8. Cindi

    Hi
    My cd4 is 490 and my viral load is 612 not on treatment. I started to know my status in 2009, but gave birth two times and my cd stay the same. My bF tested several times but still negetive we are together for more than eleven years.

  9. Rebecca McDowall

    Hi Ntombi,
    I’m very sorry to hear about you recent diagnosis. It’s normal to feel overwhelmed when you find out you are HIV positive but it is important that you get medical advice and find out your CD4 count. This will let you take control of the situation and start treatment if you need to. If you are experiencing lots of sicknesses this could be a sign that your CD4 count is low and you need treatment.

    There is more information about dealing with a new diagnosis on this page.

    If you need support to help you come to terms with being positive you could contact TAC, who are based in South Africa. They are an HIV+ organisation based in Cape Town. If you are in South Africa they should be able to introduce you to support groups in your area.

  10. Ntombi

    Hi.

    I was at the clinic 2 months back to check my status and it came out positive i did’nt wanted to listen what the nurse wanted to say after that i took my bag and left,

    i dnt know about my cd4 an viral load but im gettin sick more often is it possible that this might be related to me being hiv positive?

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