The early signs and symptoms of HIV/AIDS

Fever is one of the most common signs of acute HIV, and 75% of symptomatic people get it.

The typical fever range is 100° to 104° F, and the mean temperature is102°.
Fever can begin as early as 3 days after acquiring HIV, but most people get it in 7 to 14 days. Fever can last from one to several weeks.

Fatigue and muscle aches are other common symptoms of early HIV—68% of symptomatic people get fatigue and 49% get muscle aches.

Both fatigue and muscle aches usually occur about 7 days after contracting HIV. They are usually generalized and similar to what you’d get with the flu.
They usually last from 3 to 7 days, and these symptoms completely resolve.

Lymph nodes usually become enlarged a bit later in the disease process: the second week of the illness. This coincides with the emergence of a specific immune response to HIV—that is, when the body reacts to the HIV virus.

Of all people with early HIV, 39% develop swollen lymph nodes.

The areas in which lymph nodes most commonly become enlarged are the cervical area (neck), axillary area (armpits), and occipital area (behind the head). Lymph node enlargement is usually painless. The lymph nodes are typically moderately enlarged.

Lymph node enlargement might persist for a month or longer.

Painful mouth ulceration is one of the most distinct signs of acute HIV.These sores may develop due to a weak immune system, or they can be a sign of other STDs that can coincide with HIV infection, such as herpes, syphilis, or chancroid.

Among people with any early HIV symptoms, 40% develop mouth ulcerations.

The sores are usually very shallow with a yellow base and red border.

They usually appear 7 days after getting the virus, but their arrival can be delayed for 2 or 3weeks.

Similar sores can affect the esophagus and cause painful swallowing.

Generalized rash is a very common sign of early HIV. Rash usually follows fever and occurs 48 to 72 hours after fever onset. But rash can appear on its own as early as 3 days after HIV contraction.

Forty-eight percent of people who have early HIV symptoms get skin rash. [6] Halder, S. et al. (2012). Skin diseases in HIV-infected patients: Impact of immune status and histological correlation. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3326859/

The rash is described as 5 to 10 mm well-defined oval or round bumps. The color of the rash can range from pink to deep red.

Skin blisters and sores are not common.
The rash is usually mildly itchy or not itchy at all.
Early HIV rash might persist for 5 to 8 days.
Taking a biopsy of the rash does not assist with establishing a diagnosis of HIV.

U.S. National Library of Medicine / National Institutes of Health

Forty-five percent of people with early HIV symptoms get headache.
The headache starts 7 to 14 days after virus contraction.
It is usually described as pain behind the eyes (this is called retroorbital pain) that gets worse with eye movement.

Other more serious neurologic complications are possible, but they’re rare:

Twenty-seven percent of symptomatic people with early HIV get diarrhea.
Diarrhea usually happens between 7 and 14 days after virus contraction, and it can last for a week or two.
The diarrhea usually described as a very loose, non-bloody stool, and it is accompanied by nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, and weight loss (the average weight loss is 10 pounds).

More serious gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms are rare. They include pancreatitis and hepatitis.

The table below shows the chances of getting various symptoms with early HIV, regardless of gender.

✓ HIV viral load (RT-PCR–based viral load)

✓ HIV Ag/Ab

An HIV RNA test(ultrasensitive) can be done much earlier than an HIV p24 test, but the HIV p24 test has better sensitivity(accuracy) later on.
The false positive rate for the HIV RNA test is 2.6%.