How do I know that I am imagining HIV symptoms?
The various symptoms of the acute phase usually begin 1-6 weeks after the pathogen has penetrated. In some patients, they disappear within days. In others, it takes weeks until the symptoms subside.
The reason for this is that each person needs a different amount of time to develop an effective defence against the intruder. One can expect that symptoms such as fever, sore throat and skin rashes disappear completely after 1-4 weeks. If the symptoms of the acute phase have subsided or – as is the case with the majority of patients – have never occurred, those affected are in the so-called “latency stage”.
This can last for only a few months, many years or even a lifetime. Patients have no subjective complaints in this phase. Nevertheless, the virus spreads slowly and weakens the immune system.
How long it takes before further or first symptoms of the disease appear depends in this case on various factors. In addition to age, other previous illnesses and the genetic make-up of the virus and patient, it is also important how well the immune system was able to suppress the pathogen in the acute phase. In the best case, even without medication, it takes more than 15 years before symptoms break out.
In the worst case, it takes only months or a few years until AIDS-defining diseases break out. On average, after 3 years less than 5% of those infected have AIDS, after 10 years it is already about 50%. Before the full picture of the disease is reached, patients often feel a slow decline in performance and lose weight.
Fungal infections of the mouth and genitals as well as other infectious diseases can also occur due to the increasing immunodeficiency. These diseases are usually well treatable. Although they are a sign for the progression of the disease, they do not represent the full picture of “AIDS“.
With the help of today’s medications, the survival time and quality of life of almost all those affected can be significantly improved. If the therapy is started and consistently taken in young people before serious symptoms occur, life expectancy is almost normal. This means that many HIV patients never develop AIDS.
