More persistent or severe symptoms may not appear for 10 years or more after HIV first enters the body in adults, or within 2 years in children born with HIV infection. This period of "asymptomatic" (without symptoms) infection varies greatly in each individual. Some people may begin to have more early symptoms of HIV within a few months, while others may be symptom-free for more than 10 years.
Even during the asymptomatic period, the virus is actively multiplying, infecting, and killing cells of the immune system. The virus can also hide within infected cells and lie dormant. The most obvious effect of HIV infection is a decline in the number of CD4+ T-cells found in the blood -- the immune system's key infection fighters. The virus slowly disables or destroys these cells, often without causing early symptoms of HIV.
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