Question
Will my HIV viral load blip when I have the COVID vaccine?
22 December 2020. Related: All topics, COVID-19.
Answer
There is not enough results from HIV positive people in the first vaccine studies to report this yet, though this will be reported later.
Based on other vaccines, low-level blips might occur in a small percentage of people just after the vaccine.
These will not affect your HIV treatment or your risk to partners.
As with the answer to other questions here, it is okay to approach the COVID vaccination as if it was the annual flu vaccine – which is widely recommended for people living with HIV.
If your viral load is generally undetectable any increase is likely to be very small. For example, with the flu vaccine, it might increase from less than 50 to maybe 80 or 100 copies/mL – and only for a few days or a week. This is too low to affect the risk of transmission.
This is one of more than 65 questions about COVID vaccines. It was produced by and for people living with HIV.
Q&A on COVID vaccines: are they safe and effective?
https://i-base.info/qa/16330
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