Living Well with HIV

If you don’t know me, I’m Dr. Flash and I’m your HIV doc.

When I’m thinking about how someone’s doing with their HIV, there are two numbers that I pay attention to.

The first one is called a viral load. That’s the amount of HIV that’s circulating in each drop of your blood.

Our goal is to get that number as low as possible, so low that it’s undetectable.

If you get your viral load to undetectable, and you keep it there, you cannot transmit HIV to your sexual partner.

The other number, just for completeness-sakes, is your CD4 count, or your T-cells, that tells me how your immune system is doing.

And so, our goal is to get your viral load undetectable and to get your CD4 count and your immune system as strong as possible.

This video is a joint production of KFF’s GREATER THAN HIV and CDC’s LET’S STOP HIV TOGETHER. This information is shared for educational purposes and should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice. The views expressed are those of the featured medical professional and reflect information available to that professional at the time of filming.

Always consult a healthcare provider for any personal health decisions. The marks “CDC” and “Let’s Stop HIV Together” are owned by the US Dept. of Health and Human Services and are used with permission. Use of these logos is not an endorsement by HHS or CDC of any particular product, service, or enterprise.