When should I start treatment?

UK 2008 guidelines recommend starting treatment ealier than previously. They now recommend starting when your CD4 count is between 200 and 350 cells/mm3.

When to start treatment is something you and your doctor must discuss together. You are the person who has to take the pills. So, you have the choice over whether you start, as well as which drugs you use.

UK guidelines also recommend that a patient needs to be ready for treatment.

This is important. Even at a count of 200, you do not need to start straight away if you are not ready.

Ask about the different drugs that you can use. You need to know the good and bad things about each of them.
Take time to think about what you want to do. Do not feel rushed or pressurised into doing something you don't understand.
If you have only recently been diagnosed, you are likely to need time to come to terms with this before you are ready to start treatment.

This is the web edition of the i-Base guide Introduction to combination therapy. This guide is available in UK clinics. You can order free printed copies or download a PDF version (516 Kb). Translations. Authors and credits. Glossary. Full section index.

Decisions relating to your treatment should always be taken in consultation with your doctor. Information in this guide is intended to support those discussions.