Take Action and Get Tested for HIV

Information on the importance of education, testing and involvement in the prevention and treatment of HIV

People with HIV who know they are infected can get treatment (antiretroviral medications). Effective treatment keeps HIV infected people healthy and living longer. Studies indicate that all people with HIV infection, including those with early infection, benefit from antiretroviral medications.Treatment with antiretroviral medications lowers the level of HIV in the blood (viral load), reduces HIV-related illness, and reduces the spread of HIV to others.

Knowing they have HIV infection allows people with HIV to protect other people with whom they have sex or share drugs and needles from becoming infected. Knowing that one is positive for HIV helps that person to make better decisions about sex and health care. Studies have shown that many people with HIV who know that they are infected avoid behaviors that spread infection to others with whom they have sex or share drugs and needles. HIV-infected persons who do not know that they are infected do not avoid unsafe behaviors. Persons who know they have HIV can get medical care and take antiviral medications that can reduce HIV spread by as much as 96%.

Knowing that one does not have HIV infection can also help that person make better decisions about sex, drug use, and health care. For example, antiretroviral medications can also be used to prevent HIV infection in persons who are HIV-negative. This is called pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP.Doctors planning to prescribe PrEP must conduct testing to ensure that patients are HIV-negative before they start PrEP.

PrEP means Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, and it’s the use of anti-HIV medication that keeps HIV negative people from becoming infected. PrEP is approved by the FDA and has been shown to be safe and effective. A single pill taken once daily, it is highly effective against HIV when taken every day. The medication interferes with HIV’s ability to copy itself in your body after you’ve been exposed. This prevents it from establishing an infection and making you sick. It’s meant to be used consistently, as a pill taken every day, and to be used with other prevention options such as condoms. Find out if PrEP is right for you.

Today, an estimated 1.2 million people are living with HIV in the United States. Thanks to better treatments, people with HIV are now living longer—and with a better quality of life—than ever before. If you are living with HIV, it’s important to make choices that keep you healthy and protect others.

Learn how you can maintain a healthy lifestyle: http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/basics/livingwithhiv/index.html