HIV is a virus that damages the body's immune system, making it more susceptible to various infections and cancers. The immune system contains special cells--CD4 cells--that help protect the body from infection. In an HIV-negative person, a normal CD4 count ranges between 700 and 1,000. This lowers as the virus progresses, and once the cell count is below 200, a person is considered to then have AIDS. The lower the count, the greater the risk of health complications.
Complications for Children
The Drugs website explains that children who are HIV-positive fail to grow normally or gain weight. The worse the disease becomes, the more difficulty a child may have walking, and his mental development may become impaired as well.
Cerebral palsy is another possible complication, and aside from suffering more severe forms of normal childhood illnesses, such as ear infections and tonsillitis, an HIV-positive child is prone to the same opportunistic infections--infections that attack weak immune systems--as adults.
Mycobacterium Avium Complex
Mycobacterium avium complex--known also as MAC--is an infection whose cause is a bacteria related to tuberculosis, according to the Drugs website. This bacteria typically affects the upper respiratory tract. Those in the later stages of HIV with a CD4 count below 50 technically have AIDS, and are more likely to develop an infection in almost any internal organ, including the liver and bone marrow.
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis is the most common opportunistic infection linked with HIV worldwide, according to the Drugs website. While it usually affects the lungs in those without HIV, it is more aggressive in HIV-positive patients, spreading through the body via their blood and lymph nodes.
Tuberculosis can affect HIV patients regardless of their CD4 count, however those whose counts are below 200 face a greater risk. The symptoms that accompany this infection include a a long-term cough that may produce blood, fever, night sweats and weight loss.
Herpes Simplex Virus
Herpes simplex virus is a sexually transmitted disease that usually causes genital herpes. Its symptoms are usually pain and skin irritation in the genital area, with sores that open and bleed. Although the sores eventually heal, the herpes infection is one that recurs, continually creating new sores, according to Drugs. Those with HIV suffer more severe symptoms and face longer healing time once the sores appear. It is not life-threatening for adults, but it can cause brain damage and blindness. This is a threat for anyone with HIV, regardless of their CD4 count.
Bacillary Angiomatosis
Also known as cat scratch disease, this infection presents with patches that are purple to bright red. As the infection worsens, patients suffer from fever, chills, vomiting, sweats, poor appetite and weight loss. The Drugs website states that any person with HIV can suffer from this infection, but it is more common in patients whose CD4 counts are below 500.
Kaposi's Sarcoma
Drugs states that Kaposi's sarcoma is the most common cancer related to AIDS, and tends to occur in patients with CD4 counts of 200 or less. The tumors appear on the walls of the blood vessels, and symptoms include pink, red or purple spots on the skin and inside the mouth. The lesions vary in size--they may be as small as a pinhead or as large as a coin--and can be painless. Sores, bumps or spots tend to appear first on the face, mouth, upper body or legs, and can cause itching at the site. Sores in the mouth or throat may make swallowing painful and difficult.
