Just like most medications, HIV inhibitors can also cause some side effects. Fortunately, considerable research is being carried out into HIV inhibitors, so fewer and fewer side effects occur nowadays. Whether you will suffer from them, when and how badly, varies from one person to the next. It is also possible, you may not even notice the side effects and they may only become apparent when you have a blood test. Regular blood tests are therefore important.
Examples of short-term side effects:
- Gastrointestinal complaints: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea.
- Fatigue.
- Headache.
- Abnormalities in blood tests: anemia, reduced liver and kidney functions.
Examples of long-term side effects:
Many of these side effects (*) can also be caused by the HIV itself. It is therefore sometimes difficult to determine the cause of the complaints or symptoms.
- Change in the amount of fats in your blood (*).
- Change in your metabolism; less sensitive to insulin.
- Vascular abnormalities (*).
- Reduced liver function (*).
- Bone disorders (*).
- Effects on the brain (*).
- Psychological complaints (*).
Fats in the blood
Your blood contains all kinds of substances, including sugars, salts, fats and many more. These substances are needed everywhere in your body, as fuel, building material or as reserves. Examples of fats in your blood are cholesterol and triglycerides. When fats are used up, new ones are also produced again, so there is always roughly the same amount of fat in your blood. cART upsets this balance and makes you produce more cholesterol and triglycerides in your blood. That can be harmful because it increases the chance of cardiovascular disorders, among other things. A blood test is needed to measure the levels of fats in your blood.
Change in your metabolism
Your metabolism ensures that your body has a good balance of all kinds of substances, including hormones, sugars, salts and fats. When your metabolism works well, your body also works well: you have energy, you grow, your organs function properly and so on. The medication you take, can have an effect on your metabolism. Your body can become less sensitive to insulin, for example. Insulin is produced in your body to transport sugar from your blood into your body's cells, after which sugar can be used as fuel. If you are less sensitive to insulin, the sugar is not absorbed as well, so there is too much sugar in your blood. This gives you high blood sugar levels and you can develop diabetes mellitus. Blood tests are needed to measure the amount of insulin and blood sugar.
Abnormalities in your blood vessels
Over the years, excess cholesterol and triglyceride in your blood causes fat to accumulate inside the vascular walls, narrowing your the blood vessels. We call this atherosclerosis. Arteries carry blood from your heart to all the organs in your body. If the arteries become too narrow, the blood flow through them is diminished. This results in too little blood and therefore also too little oxygen in certain parts of your body. A lack of oxygen causes damage to tissues and organs. We call this an infarction. For example, a cerebral infarction or a heart attack.
The chance of thrombosis (blood clots in your blood vessels) also becomes greater due to an increased cholesterol level. Increased clotting and inflammatory factors play a role in this. A DVT and pulmonary embolism are examples of thrombosis.
Reduced liver function
HIV inhibitors can cause inflammation in your liver, because of that your liver will not work properly. The liver performs many jobs in your body. It produces clotting factors and bile, plays an important role in metabolism (of hormones, fats, proteins and carbohydrates) and filters waste from the blood. If your liver is unable to work effectively, none of these processes will therefore work well either.
If your liver is inflamed for a long time, you can end up with liver cirrhosis. This is when the liver is so badly damaged that recovery is no longer possible. A blood test is required to assess liver functions.
Bone disorders
Good bone density is important for the growth and development of strong bones – not only when you are still growing, but also in later life. An HIV infection has negative effects on bone density. Particularly if the virus replicates itself quickly, the immune system causes increased bone breakdown. However, reduced bone density can also be caused by too little calcium and vitamin D, and too little exercise. If bone density is so low that bone weakness occurs, we call this osteoporosis. At that time bones can break easily. Some HIV inhibitors reduce bone density even further. However, new research shows that if you use certain HIV inhibitors for a long time, bone density actually increases. Because if the virus is unable to replicate itself, bone breakdown is also inhibited. These drugs are therefore chosen for treating children. Bone measurements and blood tests are needed to assess bone density.
Effects on the brain
cART can cause headaches, dizziness and concentration problems. Sleep problems can also occur. However, effective treatment of HIV is good for the development of the brain. Without medication, an HIV infection can cause severe brain damage (stunted growth of the brain and severe motor developmental disorders). Thanks to cART, this is largely prevented. However, an increased risk of impaired (language) development can occur. Further research is needed to clarify why exactly this is the case.
Psychological complaints
The medication can make you feel anxious, down or depressed. However, these feelings can also be caused by the HIV infection itself. You can also suffer from restless dreams, concentration problems or simply not feel well.
Just like most medications, HIV inhibitors also have some side effects. Fortunately, considerable research is being carried out into HIV inhibitors, so fewer and fewer side effects occur nowadays. It is impossible to say whether you will suffer from side effects, when or how badly, as this varies from one person to the next. It is possible, you may not even notice the side effects at all and they may only become apparent when you have a blood test. Regular blood tests are therefore important.
Examples of short-term side effects:
- Gastrointestinal complaints: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Abnormalities in blood tests: anemia, reduced liver function and kidney functions
Examples of long-term side effects:
Many of these side effects (*) can also be caused by the HIV itself. It is therefore sometimes difficult to determine the cause of the complaints or symptoms.
- Change in the amount of fats in your blood (*)
- Change in your metabolism; less sensitive to insulin
- Vascular abnormalities (*)
- Reduced liver function (*)
- Bone disorders (*).
- Effects on the brain (*).
- Psychological complaints (*)
Fats in the blood
Your blood contains all kinds of substances, including sugars, salts, fats and many more. These substances are needed everywhere in your body, as fuel, building material or as reserves. Examples of fats in your blood are cholesterol and triglycerides. When fats are used up, they are also produced again, so there is always roughly the same amount of fat in your blood. cART upsets this balance and makes you produce more cholesterol and triglycerides in your blood. An excess of these fats in your blood can be harmful, as it increases the chance of cardiovascular disorders, among other things. A blood test is needed to measure the levels of fats in your blood.
Change in metabolism
Your metabolism ensures that your body has a good balance of all kinds of substances, including hormones, sugars, salts and fats. When your metabolism works well, your body also works well: you have energy, you grow, your organs function properly and so on. The medication you take can have an effect on your metabolism, such as reduced sensitivity of your body to insulin. Your body makes insulin in order to transport sugar from your blood into your body's cells, where it can be used as fuel. If you become less sensitive to insulin, the sugar is not absorbed as well, so there is too much sugar flowing around your body. This gives you high blood sugar levels and you can develop diabetes mellitus. Blood tests are needed to measure the amount of insulin and blood sugar.
Vascular abnormalities
An excess of cholesterol and triglyceride is not good for your arteries. Over the years, fat accumulates inside the vascular walls, narrowing the blood vessels. We call this atherosclerosis. Arteries carry blood from your heart to all the organs in your body. If the arteries become too narrow, the blood flow through them is diminished. This results in too little blood and therefore also too little oxygen in certain parts of your body. Oxygen deficiency causes damage to tissues and organs. We call this an infarction. For example, a cerebral infarction or a heart attack.
The chance of thrombosis (the formation of blood clots in your blood vessels) also becomes greater due to an increased cholesterol level. Increased clotting and inflammatory factors play a role in this. A DVT and pulmonary embolism are examples of thrombosis.
Reduced liver functions
HIV inhibitors can cause inflammation in your liver, preventing your liver from working properly. The liver performs many jobs in your body. It produces clotting factors and bile, plays an important role in metabolism (of hormones, fats, proteins and carbohydrates) and filters waste from the blood. If your liver is unable to work effectively, none of these processes will work well either.
If your liver is inflamed for a long time, you can end up with liver cirrhosis. This is when the liver is so badly damaged that recovery is no longer possible. Infections such as hepatitis A, B and C can also cause liver inflammation. A blood test is required to assess liver functions.
Bone disorders
Good bone density is important for the development of strong bones and good growth. Good bone density is particularly important when you are still growing, but also for later life. An HIV infection has negative effects on bone density. Particularly if the virus replicates itself quickly, the immune system causes increased bone breakdown. However, reduced bone density can also be caused by too little calcium and vitamin D, and too little exercise. If bone density is so low that bone weakness occurs, we call this osteoporosis. At that time bones can break easily. Some HIV inhibitors reduce bone density even further. However, new research shows that if you use certain HIV inhibitors for a long time, bone density actually increases. Because if the virus is unable to replicate itself, bone breakdown is also inhibited. These drugs are therefore chosen for treating children. Bone measurements and blood tests are needed to assess bone density.
Effects on the brain
cART can cause headaches, dizziness and concentration problems. Sleep problems can also occur. However, effective treatment of HIV is good for the development of the brain. Left untreated, HIV can cause severe brain damage (stunted growth of the brain and severe motor developmental disorders). Thanks to cART, this is largely prevented. However, an increased risk of impaired (language) development can occur. Further research is needed to clarify why exactly this is the case.
Psychological complaints
The medication can make you feel anxious or down. However these feelings can also be due to the HIV infection itself. You can also suffer from restless dreams, concentration problems or simply not feel well.
What can and can't you do?
If you have HIV, you often know yourself what you can and can't do, or your parents will be well informed about this. But some extra information can never hurt.
The previous sections have hopefully made it clear how the virus works, how the medications work and why it is so important to take them. We will now look at some other issues, such as all the sense and the nonsense that you hear about how the virus can be transmitted, the precautions, how to tell people about it and the future.
