Hot Topics at The Body's "Ask the Experts" Forums

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We are pleased to send you this summary of the hottest topics
at The Body's "Ask the Experts" forums. Here you'll find answers
to some of the most interesting questions recently asked by our
users. Please feel free to take advantage of this unique resource!
   http://www.thebody.com/experts.shtml
   
Thanks!

Bonnie Goldman
Editorial Director
The Body: The Most Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Resource on the Internet
http://www.thebody.com

*~~**~~* "Ask the Experts" en Espanol *~~**~~*

Know someone who needs HIV information in Spanish? We have three
HIV specialists available to regularly answer questions from
Spanish speakers!
http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/SpanishTreatment/index.html

¿Tiene preguntas sobre su tratamiento de VIH/SIDA? Doctores
especializados en VIH/SIDA estan disponibles a responder en su
propio idioma a todas sus interrogantes.
http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/SpanishTreatment/index.html
   
*~~**~~* Mental Health and HIV *~~**~~*

I just found out about my status, and as you might imagine I feel
quite lost. I'm 36 years old and afraid that now I won't be able
to find a companion. My sex drive is low and I wish I could be back
to my normal self. What can I do to be as close as possible to
feeling normal? 
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Mental/Current/Q151335.html
   
*~~**~~* Understanding Your Labs *~~**~~*

Any idea what's causing these jumps in my CD4 count and viral load?
I was infected with HIV last December and I'm not on treatment. My
CD4 count bounces from 700 to 900 and then back again, while my
viral load goes back and forth between undetectable and 200. My
doctor says my numbers are really good for the first year of being
HIV positive.
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Labs/Current/Q151294.html
   
After a treatment interruption, I started taking nelfinavir
(Viracept), nevirapine (Viramune) and tenofovir (Viread). In the
last eight months since restarting treatment, my viral load has
vacillated between 6,000 and 25,000, while my CD4 has stayed at
about 480. My doctor says this is not a big concern. What do
you think?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Labs/Current/Q151360.html
   
*~~**~~* Complementary Therapies *~~**~~*

What kind of impact will the Supreme Court's decision to allow doctors
to talk to their patients about using medical marijuana have on its
use in the U.S.?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Starting/Current/Q151269.html
  
*~~**~~* HIV/HAART-Related Health Problems *~~**~~*

How do I balance the odds of developing a severe negative reaction to
HIV meds against the likelihood of developing opportunistic infections
without the meds?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Starting/Current/Q151315.html
  
Dr. Pierone, you recently answered a question about wasting in which
you mentioned that you sometimes prefer alternative treatments. Could
you talk about them?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Lipodystrophy/Current/Q151392.html
   
I began an HIV treatment regimen in March 2003 that includes d4T
(stavudine, Zerit). I have seen no signs of lipodystrophy so far.
Do all patients taking d4T develop butt wasting and other forms of
lipodystrophy? How long before the symptoms show up?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Lipodystrophy/Current/Q151184.html
   
Thanks to my HIV meds I'm still alive and well (undetectable viral
load, 860 CD4 count), but now my labs show I may be developing
diabetes. What can I do to stay healthy?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/SideEffects/Current/Q151338.html
  
*~~**~~* Questions on HIV Treatment *~~**~~*

My salary is only $12,000 a year and I have no insurance. Is there
any way I can pay for my HIV medicines?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Starting/Current/Q151374.html
   
Should I be worried about developing fat problems while on Kaletra
(lopinavir/ritonavir), even though I'm doing well on it after four
weeks? I'm also concerned that if I use Kaletra now I may not be
able to use it later; another doctor in these forums said that he
uses it only for salvage. What do you think?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Lipodystrophy/Current/Q151341.html
  
I'm interested in adding efavirenz (Sustiva) to my Trizivir (AZT +
3TC + abacavir)-only regimen so it'll become more potent, but my
doctor says I'm doing fine on Trizivir alone. Shouldn't I add
efavirenz just to be safe, even though my viral load is undetectable
and my CD4 is going up?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Switching/Current/Q151174.html
  
After I was diagnosed in 1997, my doctor put me on 3TC (lamivudine,
Epivir), d4T (stavudine, Zerit) and nelfinavir (Viracept), but
changed my cocktails in 2002 due to side effects. He switched me to
Trizivir (AZT + 3TC + abacavir) alone, which did not work that well.
He then added nevirapine (Viramune) and later switched that to
efavirenz (Sustiva). My viral load soon rebounded, though: It's now at
1,100, so I am having a genotype resistance test done. I assume he'll
want to put me on a boosted protease inhibitor and whatever NRTIs I'm
not resistant to (if any). Do you have suggestions on which cocktail
might be better for me?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Switching/Current/Q151284.html
   
*~~**~~* Safe Sex & HIV Transmission *~~**~~*

A couple of weeks ago, my partner revealed that he is HIV positive.
He is a "long-term non-progressor." What sexual practice is
considered risky for us? Are there any programs in Sydney that can
help mixed-status couples?
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/Couples/Current/Q151029.html
   
*~~**~~* Strange but True *~~**~~*

Can HIV "run" up a stream of sperm? I masturbated into a sock and am
worried it may have climbed from the sock through my semen and into
my penis.
   http://www.thebody.com/Forums/AIDS/SafeSex/Current/Q151321.html
   
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