Virus symptoms similar to hiv

Getting and staying on treatment prevents passing HIV to others. Without HIV treatment, people can stay in this stage for a decade or more, although some move through this stage faster. With treatment, HIV is only present in very small amounts in genital fluids and blood, or it may not be detectable at all.

Chronic symptoms occur when the virus breaks down the body's immune defenses, leaving it open to infection. During the chronic stage, many of these symptoms are non-specific, meaning that they could be caused by any number of things. This article details seven signs and symptoms that can easily be missed if you have or have been recently diagnosed with HIV. This photo contains content that some people may find graphic or disturbing.

A rash is often the first sign of HIV, although it only appears in 2 of every 5 newly infected people. The rash is distinct with large areas of flat, reddened skin peppered with tiny bumps. The rash can be itchy or painful. Flu-like symptoms are also common.

The rash usually starts two to six weeks after exposure to the virus and will clear within one to two weeks. The widespread rash mainly affects the trunk and face, but can sometimes occur on the arms, legs, hands, and feet.

If you have a sudden rash with flu-like symptoms two to six weeks after having sex with a partner of unknown HIV status , you may need to consider HIV as a possible cause. Swollen lymph nodes lymphadenopathy can occur in the early stages of HIV as the body tries to kill the virus. The swelling can sometimes be painful and even unsightly.

Even as the other signs of the acute infection clear, swollen lymph nodes can persist in some people for many weeks or months. Lymphadenopathy is also common with opportunistic infections like tuberculosis as well as HIV-associated cancers.

One of the early opportunistic infections in people living with HIV is oral thrush. It is considered "opportunistic" because it seizes the opportunity to infect when the immune system is weak. Oral thrush, also known as oral candidiasis , is caused by a fungus that can invade the inside of the mouth and throat.

It can affect people who are relatively healthy but is still a sign that the immune system is breaking down. If the breakdown of the immune system is severe , the fungus can spread into the windpipe, lungs, and even the bloodstream.

Oral thrush is one of the early signs that your immune system is breaking down as a result of HIV. Night sweats, also known as sleep hyperhidrosis , can occur either during the acute stage as the body fights the virus or during the chronic phase as a result of an opportunistic infection. As opposed to just being sweaty, night sweats are when your clothing and bedding are drenched in sweat, often soaking through and causing shivers.

Sweating of this level is never considered normal. Night sweats can occur for other reasons, some of which are not serious such as menopause and others that may be like cancer. If you have drenching night sweats, don't hesitate to have it checked it out.

Weight loss is common in people living with HIV during the advanced stages of the disease. This is not about the loss of just a few pounds. Also known as HIV wasting syndrome, the condition is seen less often today due to the use of antiretroviral drugs that keep the virus suppressed and allow the immune system to rebuild itself.

Wasting is mainly seen in people who have not been treated for HIV. The exact cause of HIV wasting is unknown, but it is thought that the constant inflammation caused by HIV increases the speed at which energy is burnt and reduces testosterone levels needed to build lean muscle. Other common causes of wasting include malnutrition, chronic diarrhea, tuberculosis, and cancer, all of which require urgent diagnosis and treatment.

In the event of a breakthrough case, victims are highly unlikely to be hospitalized with severe or deadly symptoms from the virus. Health officials have advised that the Omicron variant is more infectious and could lead to further breakthrough cases.

Current vaccines are expected to protect against severe illness, hospitalizations, and deaths due to infection with the Omicron variant. With other variants, like Delta, vaccines have remained effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalizations, and death. One of the most unusual side effects reported since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic has been so-called Covid toes.

They turn red and purple and swell, burn, and itch. Your hands can be affected too and the condition can last weeks or months, doctors say. The symptom is an inflammatory skin condition that, outside of Covid infections, is often seen after someone is exposed to extremely cold conditions.

The director of Massachusetts General Hospital Global Health Dermatology and assistant professor of dermatology at Harvard Medical School said the majority of people with Covid toes develop them well after infection or without other symptoms.

Rashes , including the sudden onset of itchy hives, have also been reported in Covid patients. There are several symptoms of HIV. Not everyone will have the same symptoms. It depends on the person and what stage of the disease they are in. Within 2 to 4 weeks after infection with HIV, about two-thirds of people will have a flu-like illness.

These symptoms can last anywhere from a few days to several weeks. But some people do not have any symptoms at all during this early stage of HIV. In this stage, the virus still multiplies, but at very low levels. People in this stage may not feel sick or have any symptoms. This stage is also called chronic HIV infection. Without HIV treatment, people can stay in this stage for 10 or 15 years, but some move through this stage faster. If you take HIV medicine every day, exactly as prescribed and get and keep an undetectable viral load, you can protect your health and have effectively no risk of transmitting HIV to your sexual partner s.