HIV Symptoms 2.0

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a virus that affects the immune system and can lead to severe outcomes such as death. The virus evolves in different stages, and each stage can have different symptoms (CDC, 2022). Although most of these symptoms are similar to other viruses and diseases, a person needs to get tested in the early stages to help manage the virus and live a healthy life if infected. In the early stages, HIV might be undetectable, but within two weeks, symptoms start to show (HIV and Dementia, 2021). Some take long once their manifest others disappear after a short period.

Extreme night sweats and recurring fever is one of the symptoms of HIV, and it’s experienced in the late stages and early stages. Patients with HIV experience a lot of sweating, soaking the clothes they have on and extending to the bedding (CDC, 2022). The sweating happens throughout the night. Again, fever is also experienced during the day and night. At the same time, a patient might experience chills and fever. Due to the infection and affected immune system, the patient experiences these infections.
In the advanced stages where the patient has Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), pneumonia is a symptom. Of the variety of types of pneumonia, cytomegalovirus is the one associated with patients with HIV. Pneumonia bacteria precedes other infections and takes advantage of the weak immune system to attack. It can be experienced in both the early and late stages of HIV (Tappuni, 2020). Moreover, other infections can be experienced when infected with HIV. Mouth ulcers, private parts, and anus can also get infections associated with HIV. The mouth sores infections affect the patient's ability to eat and also becomes challenging to eat particular foods. Through this, the patient's health is affected, leading to poor quality of health.

In the late stages, weight loss is another symptom evident in HIV patients. Patients lose a lot of weight from a weak immune system, poor diet, and eating challenges to digestion complications such as vomiting and diarrhea (CDC, 2022). Although they might be receiving treatment, the weight loss symptom seems unmanageable. If the patient does not seek medical help, this can lead to severe outcomes, which include death or the inability to eat or move (HIV and Dementia, 2021). Therefore, it is very important to go for a test as early as possible to understand the HIV status for an individual to receive proper medical and management guidance. Getting diagnosed early helps live a healthier life due to the medication prescribed. It also helps one protect the people they associate themselves with.

People with HIV can also see blotches on their eyes, mouths, skin, or under the skin. Depending on their location, these flaws can be red, brown, or pink. On the skin, it also causes skin rash, which can be itchy at times (Tappuni, 2020). These symptoms show the effect of the virus and the immune system as it tries to get rid of the infection-causing virus (CDC, 2022). Nevertheless, groins, armpits, and lymph nodes start to swell, and sometimes they ache to extend to the joints. The pain is experienced mostly in those areas. These symptoms affect the normal performance of the person and lead to fatigue.
Fatigue is also another symptom HIV patients have. The virus attacks the immune system, where the system tries to eliminate the virus, and this causes the patient to experience fatigue. Again, the pain from the groins, itchy skin and swollen lymph nodes results in the patient feeling tired (Tappuni, 2020). Also, the digestive system gets affected where the patient vomits occasionally and has diarrhea for like a week without any change (CDC, 2022). The use of medications designed for diarrhea might not help at this point. Therefore, the patient needs to visit a professional health care worker and get tested for HIV.

Neurologic disorders such as memory loss and depression are symptoms associated with the late stages of HIV. Due to the health issues a patient faces, they find it challenging to live a normal life, leading to depression (HIV and Dementia, 2021). Again, the virus can lead to patients experiencing memory loss, challenges speaking or thinking, concentrating, motor skills loss, and also lack interest if it spreads to the brain. By spreading to the brain, certain nerves are destroyed, and the immune system at this point is very weak and cannot help fight the virus. At this stage, severe outcomes are to be expected.