Question
How long can someone with HIV live?
28 April 2008. Related: All topics, Living with HIV long-term, Starting treatment.
If someone has a CD4 count under 200, and start treatment, how long, on average, can they live for?
Answer
If they have a potent, working ARV regimen and they are adherent (take the medications regularly and as they are prescribed), then it is expected that the person will have a normal life span, perhaps almost as long as the life span of HIV-negative person.
The medications work and they have reduced immensely the morbidity and mortality all around the world.
Hi Thandie,
It sounds like you’ve had a very stressful time since you were diagnosed. Do you have any support?
It’s important that you keep getting your CD4 count checked. I can’t tell you how likely it is that you will need to start treatment. All I can tell you is that treatment today is much easier to take than ever before. If you wait to become ill before you start taking treatment you can have more problems. The illnesses which can come from HIV can be much harder to treat that HIV itself. So it’s important to go back to your doctor and get regular check ups. For more information about treatment please take a look at our guide to combination therapy.
Discovered my status when i was pregnant in 2009 and my cd4 count was 600. I went for my regular checks again 6months ago my CD4 count was 900. Then I fell pregnant and had an abortion..now I am scared to go to my doctor to check my CD4 count since I lost so much blood and I became sick after my abortion..I am feel good still looking healthy and living a healthy lifestyle now. What are the chances of me taking ARVs in the next 3years?
I am experiencing constant headache dry mouth and dry throat.
Other than HIV drugs, nothing has been found that can stop a gradual decrease in CD4 counts over time. This is what HIV infection does to the immune system after infection.
Luckily, for most people, this is slow and takes many years, and when treatment is started the immune system recovers again.
If an HIV-positive person has a CD4 count of 700, what can they do to retain this CD4 count?