Question
If viral load is undetectable in blood, what about other places?
11 July 2012. Related: All topics, CD4 and viral load, Living with HIV long-term.
When obtaining an undetectable level I was relieved, but I now understand this measurement is only a percentage which exists in our blood.
I am now concerned about the quanity of virus that is attacking in all other parts of our bodies such as lymphs, brain, etc – in fact everywhere!
It seems that the more knowledgeable I become the more I realise HIV really is life threatning and in reality my long term future looks bleak.
Am I right to feel this way?
Answer
Hi
Thank for your question and allowing us to post the answer online.
It is great that your viral load is undetectable. This is good news. It means that your treatment is working. As long as you are careful to keep taking it, you should benefit for many years.
You are right that this is only a measure of viral load in your blood. However, the result in blood is closely linked to HIV all over your body.
So although you are right that we need to think about HIV in our brain, liver, stomach, genital tract etc – in practice, this is likely to be undetectable there as well. Although researchers are looking at other sites, this is a specialist area. After many years on effective treatment, HIV becomes difficult to find in most people.
Even without testing these other places, people with undetectable viral load in blood do very well.
Please don’t stop learning about the complexity of HIV though. It is very exciting. But on a personal level, you can do this without worrying too much. The future is much more exciting than you think.
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