Early HIV Symptoms in Men

HIV or human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus, which is a member of retrovirus family. Human immunodeficiency virus or HIV is known to cause AIDS or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, which is a condition, where the immune system weakens, paving the way for some serious opportunistic infections, and several types of cancer. This is because, the virus attacks and destroys certain key white blood cells, concerned with fighting cancer and the infectious agents that enter the body. When these cells are destroyed, the immune system is no longer able to prevent infections. However, it may take several years for the initial HIV infection to develop into AIDS and produce the debilitating health problems or symptoms. Early HIV symptoms in men usually appear within a few weeks from the time of infection.

How Does HIV Spread?
Human Immunodeficiency virus generally spreads through blood, semen, vaginal fluid and breast milk. The virus usually spreads through unprotected sex, as the virus can spread via semen and vaginal fluid. Another common way, in which people can contact this virus is the use of a common needle while intravenous drug use, if the needle is contaminated with even a small amount of infected blood. Apart from these, human immunodeficiency virus can also spread though blood transfusion, and from an infected mother to her baby during pregnancy or while breast-feeding.

Early HIV Symptoms in Men
The early symptoms of HIV in men resemble the symptoms of flu or pneumonia, and are usually less intense than the symptoms that they develop in the later stage of the infection. The most commonly observed early HIV symptoms in men are:

• Mild to moderate fever
• Mild to moderate headache
• Sore throat
• Swollen glands, particularly under the armpit and in the neck
• Unexplained fatigue or lack of stamina
• Joint and muscle pain
• Diarrhea
• Skin rash, especially in the chest, which usually subsides within a few weeks

Later on, when the HIV infection progresses and the affected individual develops acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, the symptoms become more intense. As the immune system gets damaged, the affected men can experience some new and more debilitating symptoms. The later symptoms of HIV/AIDS are:

• Persistent and excessive fatigue
• Rapid weight loss
• Enlarged spleen and liver
• Chronic diarrhea
• Profuse night sweats
• Persistent or recurring fever with chills
• Dry cough
• Persistent headaches
• Pneumonia
• Development of unusual white spots on tongue, mouth and throat
• Swollen lymph nodes
• Appearance of reddish brown or purplish spots on or under the skin, particularly in areas like, nose and mouth
• Memory loss
• Depression and other neurological disorders

Diagnosis and Treatment of HIV/AIDS
Earlier, ELISA or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test was the only diagnostic test for HIV/AIDS. In this test, a sample of blood is tested to look for the antibodies to the human immunodeficiency virus. If the result of this test comes out to be positive, then the test is again repeated. A positive result for the second time is followed by another test called western blot test, that looks for the presence of HIV proteins. However, presently, several other tests have been developed that basically examine a sample of blood and oral mucus for the presence of the antibodies to the virus.

Treatment for HIV/AIDS basically aims at suppressing the symptoms as much as possible, and improving the quality of life of the patients. Earlier, physicians had only a few options to treat a condition like HIV, and other opportunistic infections that can develop due to a weakened immune system. However, a number of drugs and medications have been developed in recent times to treat the condition and the associated complications. The drugs that are generally employed to treat HIV and prolong the lifespan of the affected individual are anti-retroviral drugs, that can prevent the growth and replication of the virus. There are mainly seven classes of anti-retroviral drugs that are used for HIV treatment. These anti-retroviral drugs are, protease inhibitors, nucleoside analog reverse transcriptase inhibitors, fusion inhibitors, non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, integrase inhibitors, chemokine co-receptor inhibitors and nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitors. One of the most important HIV facts is that it has no cure till date, but, research and development in the HIV treatment has no doubt increases the life expectancy of the people suffering from this fatal disease.

The risk factors for getting infected with the human immunodeficiency virus are, having unprotected sex with a HIV positive person, sharing the same needle during intravenous drugs use, receiving a blood transfusion from an infected person, and having sexually transmitted diseases, especially, syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia and bacterial vaginosis. So, it is very important to get tested for the presence of human immunodeficiency virus, if a person feels that he is at risk of getting infected with the virus. At the same time, knowledge about the early HIV symptoms in men is also important. Though there is no cure for the condition, the replication of the virus can be controlled with effective treatment, which can help to slow down the progress of the disease.