Expert: Terry B - 9/9/2006

Question
how long is it from initial infection to becoming contagious for a person with aids of hiv.  

Answer
Dear Mic:

Peace.  Short answer would be 24 to 48 hours from infection - longer answer may help you better understand and I encourage you to go to several sources for more detailed information.

Each cell in our bodies contain volumes of information about us in our DNA.  HIV (a retrovirus) - needs DNA to reproduce.  When HIV infection occurs, it does so by the virus attaching to a cell (monocytes, lymphocytes, etc.) and using the DNA of that cell to make copies of itself. One image that might help is someone using a poor copy machine to make copies of a few pages of the encyclopedia at a time; about a quarter of the copies of the original are exact, a quarter inexact but readable (reproducable in the case of the virus - how mutations occur) and about half are unreadable (or, in the case of HIV, such poor copies of the virus that they cannot reproduce).

This copying goes on at a tremendously high rate, until the cell ruptures, sending more particles of the virus through the system to find more cells, make more copies, etc....

In an individual, this process begins at the time of infection. The viral replication rate varies among individuals, but this replication (more and more copies of the virus being made) goes on unchecked until the body(specifically, the immune system) recognizes the virus and mounts an attack against it (specific cells - antibodies) which seek to isolate and destroy the virus.  Thus, the period from initial infection until partial viral suppression is that in which a person has the most virus in their fluids and is still relatively healthy - and most likely or able to pass along the virus to others.

Check out www.thebody.com, www.aegis.com, and other sources for greater detail.

I hope this helps.  

Cheers.

Terry