Question
I am just diagnosed with a CD4 count of 10?
7 December 2011. Related: All topics, CD4 and viral load, Newly diagnosed, Starting treatment.
I’ve recently tested HIV+ and unfortunately my CD4 count came out at 10. I am not ill, but do i have the chance to live any longer.
Answer
Hi
As well as being HIV positive, your CD4 count is very low. Unless you were only infected very recently, this means your HIV is very advanced.
Using ARV treatment (ART) as soon as possible is important. ART will reduce the serious risk of HIV-related health complications.
The medicines will still work for you. There are many reasons to be hopeful and optimistic.
Because your CD4 count is uder 50 there is also a chance that other infections (called IRIS) might become active during the first few months of treatment. These are usuallly easy to treat, but tell your doctor about any new symptoms over the next months.
Also, please be very careful not to miss any doses of your meds. This is called good adherence.
Your doctor should also give you antibiotics to protect you from other infections. This is usually cotrimoxazole (often also called Septrin or Bactrim) which is a combination of trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole. This treatment should continue until your CD4 count gets much higher (at least above 200, maybe above 350).
While your CD4 count is still below 50, including now, your doctor should also examine your eyes. This is to check whether a viral infection called CMV is affecting your eyes. CMV can cause serious and permanent vision loss.
For more information see this guide to starting treatment, called Introduction to ART.
If you were not expecting to be HIV positive, this will take a while for the news to sink in. It will get easier – and hopefully you will get a good response from treatment.
These two links might help:
Just diagnosed:
https://i-base.info/just-found-out
Who can I talk to:
https://i-base.info/who-can-i-talk-to
Note: This answer was updated in December 2016 from a question first posted on 13 September 2011.
Two months on Arvs but still get sick does this mean my medication is failing? Started treatment with a cd4 count of 79
Hi Brad,
Which country do you live in. What sort of job is it that you do?
Roy-my employment is dependent upon a medical certificate with standards of cd4 350 as the minimum. It’s been a long road rebuilding my cd4 counts so I’m hopeful to see 350 eventually, but once there any fluctuations below 350 could put me out of work again.
Hi Brad,
Please see this similar Q&A that gives more infomation on CD4, CD4% and CD4:CD8 ratio. As Simon says on this question, although generally a higher CD4 is good, an HIV negative person with a normal CD4 count of 1200 is not more healthy than someone whose normal count is 400.
Some HIV positive people who start ART with very low CD4 counts don’t see their CD4 counts recover to very high levels. But what is your very specific need to have a CD4 count above 350?
Hi Lisa, thanks for your reply. Yes, CD4 at 310 just 8 months ago, 300 in the next check 5 months ago then 244 a month ago; VL is undetectable the entire time. I see reports that CD4 can fluctuate with many variables and some even indicate large fluctuations of several hundred points. I’m wondering if I can hope for a continued rise and if it’s common to see large CD4 variations of 50 or more. I have a very specific need for greater than 350 and some big decisions based on maintaining above 350.
Hi Brad,
Are you saying that your last CD4 count was 245, and that the one before that was 310? And that your viral load is undetectable?
I was diagnosed with HIV in December 2014 with a very high viral load and undetectable CD4 (below 20), and a Hep-C co-infection. I began treatment immediately which quickly lowered my viral load. In mid-2016 my counts were good enough (still below optimum) to treat the Hep-C and am now cured of Hep-C. Approaching 4 years now of adherence, my load remains undetectable and my CD4 has recovered to 310 several months ago and 245 most recently. I’m a 50yo male in the US with no other health concerns, can I hope for continued improvement in CD4?
Hi David,
Thanks very much for this feedback. It’s really great that you’re feeling better and hopeful.
Hi. I just wanted to thank you for this website. I was diagnosed with HIV a month ago and I already started ART. Since my CD4 Count was so low -23- I have been searching over the internet and I just ended up depressed and scared. You have been the only one site that has made me feel better and gave me hope. You have a blessing and I thank you for that.
Hi Phushy,
How long has this person been on ARVs for? What was their CD4 count when they were diagnosed? Are they taking medication for the diabetes?