A key part of your HIV treatment plan is to keep track of how well your HIV medicines are controlling the virus. This can be checked by having blood tests. These tests check for changes in your viral load (how much HIV is in your blood). They also check for changes in your CD4 cell count (how many CD4 cells are in your blood).
The more CD4 cells you have in your body, the better. They are like warriors. They fight to protect you from diseases, germs, and infections. But CD4 cells are a favorite target of HIV. Without the right treatment, the virus keeps on killing CD4 cells. This puts you at high risk for serious health problems. When medicines do control the virus, more and more CD4 cells stay safe to protect you from infection.
When your CD4 cell count is:
Once you test positive for HIV, you should have a CD4 cell count done every 3 to 6 months. This lets you track the health of your immune system.
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