Question
Will ARVs still work if my partner’s CD4 count is 75?
5 September 2011. Related: All topics, Opportunistic infections, Starting treatment.
My boyfriend just recently found out that his CD4 count is 75 and the doctor told him that it’s too late and that the ARVs might not work.
– How true is that?
– And could I be the cause of his breakdown because I have been on ARVs for the past 4 months and he didn’t want to take the pills and continued to have sex without the use of a condom.
– Now he blames me and says I’ll be the cause of his death. Am I really?
Answer
Thank you for your questions.
It is not too late for your boyfriend to start taking treatment. The doctor is not correct in saying this. Studies have shown that people can start taking treatments regardless of how low their CD4 count is. Majority of people starting treatment achieve an undetectable viral load within about 3 months.
According to studies, with a CD4 count of 75, it is possible that your boyfriend could have been positive for a few years already. He is therefore not accurate in saying that you will be the cause of his death.
Studies have also shown that with treatment, people living with HIV can expect to live long healthy lives. It is therefore recommended that your boyfriend starts taking treatment as soon as possible.
As your boyfriend’s CD4 count is below 200, he could benefit with taking septrin. Septrin is an antibiotic that will protect him from getting Opportunistic Infections. These are infections that a person with a CD4 count of below 200, could easily develop.
Hellow Doctor I was pregnant last year 2011 and tested when i was three months and was negative.When I was six months I also went back for a test and my results were still the same .When I was delivering I was tested and I was still negative.I breastfed my baby for three months and then changed to formula while it was 3 months, during breastfeeding my baby I was abstaining I only had sex after I gave her the formula and still it was unprotected sex.I recently realised that my boyfriend is positive with a low cd4 count of 76.All these months when I was pregnant I had unprotected sex with him.I went for a test on 10 October 2012 and still was negative.My boyfriend is on ARV he started on the 18 October 2012 and the side effects are his right side of his body become numb,he feel like he is drunk and he gets annoyed frequently and body hotness,and dizziness.
1.My question is that is it possible that my baby is infected by his father while we practiced unprotected sex when i was pregnant.?
2. Will my boyfriend be okay ?
3.Why did i not contract hiv or is it hiding.?
Hi Thuli, congratulations on such a good response to treatment!
My CD4 count was 28 last year October, I just tested this year June and it went up 280. The sooner you take your treatment the better and most important you need to take it properly as advised by your doctor.
Hi Daisy,
If your sister is having side effects she should speak to her doctor. Most side effects improve after the first few weeks of treatment. What is she taking, when did she start, and what are the side effects?
Help my sister she is on ARVs and she is having side effects.
Hi Sibanda,
Please see this previous question for an explanation of why CD4 counts fluctuate.
Is it possible that a CD4 count can rise on it’s own without taking ARVS?
Somebody was tested positive in october 2011 with a cd count of 625 whilst pregnant.
She was given ARVs and her CD4 count rose to 1025 in february 2012.
Due to allergic reaction to the drugs she stopped taking them that same month.
In september 2012 she went again for cd 4 count and it recorded a count of 1200.
What might be happening?
Do you know any more information about your sister’s treatment. Like the names of her drugs, and when she started taking them? And do you know her CD4 count?
This information would help me to understand her situation more clearly, and give you a better answer. Sometimes people do get more sick when they first start treatment, especially if they were already weak when they started treatment. She should get stronger in time. It’s important that her doctor knows about any symptoms so that they can help her.
I have a sister who recently findout that she’s hiv positive,the problem is she is not eating well because she’s sick and since she’s been taking the drugs she’s gettng more sick.what can we do to help her?
This can happen but it would be very rare. Most children who were born with HIV are likely to develop symptoms much earlier. Just like occasionally some adults have a strong immune response against HIV, some children also have similar responses.