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Acute HIV infection or primary HIV infection is the first stage of HIV
HIV

Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that can lead to AIDS , a condition in humans in which the immune system begins to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections....
 infection. It occurs before the latency stage and the potential AIDS
AIDS

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the HIV ....
 succeeding the latency stage.

ng this period (usually 2-4 weeks post-exposure) most individuals (80 to 90%) develop influenza or mononucleosis-like symptoms, most commonly fever
Fever

Fever is a frequent medical sign that describes an increase in internal body temperature to levels above normal. Fever is most accurately characterized as a temporary elevation in the body's thermoregulatory set-point, usually by about 1?2 ?C ....
, lymphadenopathy
Lymphadenopathy

Lymphadenopathy is a term meaning "disease of the lymph nodes." It is, however, almost synonymously used with "swollen/enlarged lymph nodes".When the infection is of the lymph nodes themselves, it is called lymphadenitis, but when the infection is of the lymph channels, it is called lymphangitis....
, pharyngitis
Pharyngitis

Pharyngitis is an inflammation of the throat or pharynx. In most cases it is painful, and thus is often referred to as a sore throat. Inflammation of the tonsils and/or larynx occur simultaneously, which can make eating difficult or painful....
, generalized rash
Rash

A rash is a change of the skin which affects its color, appearance, or texture. A rash may be localized in one part of the body, or affect all the skin....
 of maculopapular type, myalgia
Myalgia

Myalgia means "muscle pain" and is a symptom of many diseases and disorders. The most common causes are overuse or over-stretching of a muscle or group of muscles....
, malaise
Malaise

Malaise is a feeling of general discomfort or uneasiness, an "out of sorts" feeling, often the first indication of an infection or other disease....
, mouth and esophagal sores, and may also include, but less commonly, headache
Headache

In medicine a headache or wiktionary:cephalalgia is a symptom of a number of different conditions of the head and sometimes neck. Some of the causes are benign while others are medical emergencies....
, nausea
Nausea

Nausea is the sensation of unease and discomfort in the stomach with an urge to vomit....
 and vomiting
Vomiting

Vomiting is the forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the nose. Undesired vomiting may result from many causes, ranging from gastritis or poisoning to brain tumors, or elevated intracranial pressure....
, enlarged liver/spleen, weight loss
Weight loss

Weight loss, in the context of medicine or health or physical fitness, is a reduction of the total body weight, due to a mean loss of fluid, body fat or adipose tissue and/or lean mass, namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon and other connective tissue....
, thrush
Candidiasis

Candidiasis, commonly called yeast infection or thrush, is a fungal infection of any of the Candida species, of which Candida albicans is the most common....
, and neurological symptoms. Infected individuals may experience all, some, or none of these symptoms. The acute illness can last between a few days and 10 weeks, though usually less than 14 days. In some very rare cases, about 10 patients from 1989 to date, a bilateral facial palsy
Bell's palsy

Bell's palsy is a paralysis of cranial nerve VII resulting in inability to control facial muscles on the affected side. Several conditions can cause a facial paralysis, e.g., brain tumor, stroke, and Lyme disease....
 has been associated with acute HIV-1 infection.

Because of the nonspecific nature of these symptoms, they are often not recognized as signs of HIV infection.






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Encyclopedia


Acute HIV infection or primary HIV infection is the first stage of HIV
HIV

Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that can lead to AIDS , a condition in humans in which the immune system begins to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections....
 infection. It occurs before the latency stage and the potential AIDS
AIDS

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the HIV ....
 succeeding the latency stage.

Symptoms

During this period (usually 2-4 weeks post-exposure) most individuals (80 to 90%) develop influenza or mononucleosis-like symptoms, most commonly fever
Fever

Fever is a frequent medical sign that describes an increase in internal body temperature to levels above normal. Fever is most accurately characterized as a temporary elevation in the body's thermoregulatory set-point, usually by about 1?2 ?C ....
, lymphadenopathy
Lymphadenopathy

Lymphadenopathy is a term meaning "disease of the lymph nodes." It is, however, almost synonymously used with "swollen/enlarged lymph nodes".When the infection is of the lymph nodes themselves, it is called lymphadenitis, but when the infection is of the lymph channels, it is called lymphangitis....
, pharyngitis
Pharyngitis

Pharyngitis is an inflammation of the throat or pharynx. In most cases it is painful, and thus is often referred to as a sore throat. Inflammation of the tonsils and/or larynx occur simultaneously, which can make eating difficult or painful....
, generalized rash
Rash

A rash is a change of the skin which affects its color, appearance, or texture. A rash may be localized in one part of the body, or affect all the skin....
 of maculopapular type, myalgia
Myalgia

Myalgia means "muscle pain" and is a symptom of many diseases and disorders. The most common causes are overuse or over-stretching of a muscle or group of muscles....
, malaise
Malaise

Malaise is a feeling of general discomfort or uneasiness, an "out of sorts" feeling, often the first indication of an infection or other disease....
, mouth and esophagal sores, and may also include, but less commonly, headache
Headache

In medicine a headache or wiktionary:cephalalgia is a symptom of a number of different conditions of the head and sometimes neck. Some of the causes are benign while others are medical emergencies....
, nausea
Nausea

Nausea is the sensation of unease and discomfort in the stomach with an urge to vomit....
 and vomiting
Vomiting

Vomiting is the forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the nose. Undesired vomiting may result from many causes, ranging from gastritis or poisoning to brain tumors, or elevated intracranial pressure....
, enlarged liver/spleen, weight loss
Weight loss

Weight loss, in the context of medicine or health or physical fitness, is a reduction of the total body weight, due to a mean loss of fluid, body fat or adipose tissue and/or lean mass, namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon and other connective tissue....
, thrush
Candidiasis

Candidiasis, commonly called yeast infection or thrush, is a fungal infection of any of the Candida species, of which Candida albicans is the most common....
, and neurological symptoms. Infected individuals may experience all, some, or none of these symptoms. The acute illness can last between a few days and 10 weeks, though usually less than 14 days. In some very rare cases, about 10 patients from 1989 to date, a bilateral facial palsy
Bell's palsy

Bell's palsy is a paralysis of cranial nerve VII resulting in inability to control facial muscles on the affected side. Several conditions can cause a facial paralysis, e.g., brain tumor, stroke, and Lyme disease....
 has been associated with acute HIV-1 infection.

Because of the nonspecific nature of these symptoms, they are often not recognized as signs of HIV infection. Even if patients go to their doctors or a hospital, they will often be misdiagnosed as having one of the more common infectious diseases with the same symptoms. Consequently, these primary symptoms are not used to diagnose HIV infection as they do not develop in all cases and because many are caused by other more common diseases. However, recognizing the syndrome can be important because the patient is much more infectious during this period.

It is also important to consider that because these nonspecific symptoms can also be symptoms of other infections, having these symptoms does not nessesarily mean you have HIV.

 History and physical findings for primary HIV infection
sensitivity specificity
Fever 88% 50%
Malaise 73% 58%
Myalgia 60% 74%
Rash 58% 79%
Headache 55% 56%
Night sweats 50% 68%
Sore throat 43% 51%
Lymphadenopathy 38% 71%
Arthralgia 28% 87%
Nasal congestion 18% 62%


Cause

It is a period of rapid viral replication that immediately follows the individual's exposure to HIV leading to an abundance of virus in the peripheral blood with levels of HIV commonly approaching several million viruses per mL. This response is accompanied by a marked drop in the numbers of circulating CD4+ T cells. This acute viremia is associated in virtually all patients with the activation of CD8+ T cells
Cytotoxic T cell

A cytotoxic T cell belongs to a sub-group of T cells that are capable of inducing the death of infection somatic or tumor cells; they kill cells that are infected with viruses , or are otherwise damaged or dysfunctional....
, which kill HIV-infected cells, and subsequently with antibody production, or seroconversion
Seroconversion

Seroconversion is the development of detectable specific antibodies to microorganisms in the blood plasma as a result of infection or immunization....
. The CD8+ T cell response is thought to be important in controlling virus levels, which peak and then decline, as the CD4+ T cell counts rebound to around 800 cells per mL (the normal value is 1200 cells per mL ). A good CD8+ T cell response has been linked to slower disease progression and a better prognosis, though it does not eliminate the virus. A strong immune defense reduces the number of viral particles in the blood stream, marking the end of the acute HIV infection and the start of the infection's clinical latency
Incubation period

Incubation period is the time elapsed between exposure to a pathogenic organism, a chemical or ionizing radiation, and when symptoms and signs are first apparent....
 stage, which, in turn, may be succeeded by true AIDS
AIDS

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the HIV ....
.

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