What Is HIV?
Human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, is a virus that attacks the body’s in...
Human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, is a virus that attacks the body’s infection-fighting immune system. Today’s treatments help lower the amount of virus in the blood so people who are HIV-positive can live healthier lives.
![signs-you-have-hiv-symptoms](https://cdn-img.health.com/sites/default/files/styles/medium_2x/public/styles/main/public/gettyimages-170510556.jpg?itok=Rvu8CcCN "Within a month or two of HIV entering the body, 40% to 90% of people experience flulike symptoms known as acute retroviral syndrome (ARS).
But sometimes HIV symptoms don't appear for years—sometimes even a decade—after infection.
"In the early stages of HIV infection, the most common symptoms are none," says Michael Horberg, MD, director of HIV/AIDS for Kaiser Permanente, in Oakland, Calif. One in five people in the United States with HIV doesn't know they have it, which is why it's so important to get tested, especially if you have unprotected sex with more than one partner or use intravenous drugs.
Here are some signs that you may be HIV-positive.")
