aids is diagnosed when
A healthy person usually has a CD4 count of between 600 and 1,200. When the CD4 count drops below 200, a person's immune system is severely weakened, and that person is then diagnosed with AIDS, even if he or she has not become sick from other infections. AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome and is caused by HIV. HIV Testing Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is the virus that causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). HIV destroys the body's immune system and leads to AIDS....learn more >>. Rapid Oral HIV Test Getting tested for HIV is now easier. People are diagnosed with AIDS when they have certain signs or symptoms defined by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC's definition of AIDS includes: Less than 200 CD4+ T cells per cubic millimeter of blood, compared with about 1,000 CD4+ T cells for healthy people. People are diagnosed with AIDS when they have certain signs or symptoms defined by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Less than 200 CD4+ T cells per cubic millimeter of blood, compared with about 1,000 CD4+ T cells for healthy people. All HIV-positive antibody-screening tests must be confirmed with a follow-up blood test called the Western blot to make a positive diagnosis. If the antibody test and the Western blot are both positive, the likelihood of a person being HIV infected is >99%. 1 Even when a HIV-positive person feels well and is not experiencing any symptoms of the disease, CD4+ T cells are being infected by HIV. 2  CD4+ T cells accounting for less than 14 percent of all lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell.  One of more of the illnesses listed below: HIV/AIDS Testing and Diagnosis. HIV infection is commonly diagnosed by blood tests. There are three main types of tests that are commonly used: (1) HIV antibody tests, (2) RNA tests, and (3) a combination test that detects both antibodies and a piece of the virus called the p24 protein. In addition, a blood test known as a Western blot is used to confirm the diagnosis. If someone with HIV is diagnosed with one of these opportunistic infections (even if the CD4 count is above 200), he or she is said to have AIDS. AIDS usually takes time to develop from the time a person acquires HIV--usually between 2 to 10 years or more. Once a person has been diagnosed with AIDS, she or he is always considered to have AIDS, even if that person's CD4 count goes up again and/or they recover from the disease that defined their AIDS diagnosis. HIV/AIDS. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is the virus that causes AIDS. When a person becomes infected with HIV, the virus attacks and weakens the immune system. As the immune system weakens, the person is at risk of getting life-threatening infections and cancers. When that happens, the illness is called AIDS. Once a person has the virus, it stays inside the body for life. The primary tests for diagnosing HIV and AIDs include: ELISA Test — ELISA, which stands for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, is used to detect HIV infection. If an ELISA test is positive, the Western blot test is usually administered to confirm the diagnosis.
Human immunodeficiency virus is the virus that causes AIDS. When a person becomes infected with HIV, the virus attacks and weakens the immune system. As the immune system weakens, the person is at risk of getting life-threatening infections and cancers. When that happens, the illness is called AIDS.