CD4 and AIDS: In this study, we modeled the VL decay and cumulative VL and applied these relatively unique parameters to a large well-characterized cohort in order to determine whether these factors were associated with AIDS risk and CD4 recovery during HAART independent of currently recommended benchmarks of VL suppression at 6 and 12 months.[10] In the participants that we evaluated, the initiation of HAART was associated with a predictable decline in VL that was concomitantly associated with an increase in CD4 counts.