What are the symptoms of AIDS?

Not Medical Advice: Progression to AIDS: During this late stage of HIV infection, people infected with HIV may have the following symptoms:

• Rapid weight loss
• Recurring fever or profuse night sweats
• Extreme and unexplained tiredness
• Prolonged swelling of the lymph glands in the armpits, gr0in, or neck
• Diarrhea, which is persistent or chronic
• Sores of the mouth, anu$, or genit@ls
• Pneumonia
• Red, brown, pink, or purplish blotches on or under the skin or inside the mouth, nose, or eyelids
• Memory loss, depression, and other neurologic disorders and/or signs of mental deterioration
• Blurred vision
• Dry cough
• Permanent tiredness
• Shortness of breath
• Whitish coating on the tongue, throat or vagin@

The risk of developing a life-threatening illness is much greater. Examples include:

• Esophagitis (an inflammation of the lining of the lower end of the esophagus)
• Infections to the nervous system (acute aseptic meningitis, subacute encephalitis, peripheral neuropathy)
• Pneumonia
• Some cancers, such as Kaposi's sarcoma, invasive cervical cancer, lung cancer, rect@l carcinomas, hepatocellular carcinomas, head and neck cancers, cancers of the immune system known as lymphomas
• Toxoplasmosis (a disease caused by a parasite that infects the brain. It can also cause disease in the eyes and lungs)
• Tuberculosis

If you have HIV and you are not taking HIV medication (antiretroviral therapy), the HIV virus will eventually weaken your body’s immune system. The onset of symptoms signals the transition from the clinical latency stage to AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome).

AIDS (Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) is a disease caused by a virus called HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus). The illness alters the immune system, making people much more vulnerable to infections and diseases. This susceptibility worsens as the disease progresses.

A person is diagnosed with AIDS when they have developed an AIDS related condition or symptom, called an opportunistic infection or an AIDS related cancer.

These infections are called ‘opportunistic’ because they take advantage of the opportunity offered by a weakened immune system.

It is possible for someone to be diagnosed with AIDS even if they have not developed an opportunistic infection. AIDS can be diagnosed when the number of immune system cells (CD4 cells) in the blood of an HIV positive person drops below a certain level.

An AIDS diagnosis does not necessarily equate to a death sentence.

Many people can still benefit from starting antiretroviral therapy even when they have developed an AIDS defining illness. Better treatment and prevention from opportunistic infections have also helped to improve the quality and length of life for those diagnosed with AIDS.

Life-threatening illnesses may be controlled and treated with proper HIV treatment.

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