Frequency of Human T-Cell Lymphotropic Virus (HTLV) Type 1 and 2 Infection in HIV Infected Patients

Background and Objectives: Human T-cell lymphotropic viruses (HTLV) type 1 and 2 are retroviruses that share the same routes of transmission as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).As a consequence of epidemiologic similarities, HIV and HTLV-1/2 co-infection is frequent. Due to the limited data, this study assessed the seroprevalence of HTLV-1/2 infections in HIV infected patients in Tehran, Iran. Materials and Methods: This case-control study was carried out in 180 HIV infected patientsfrom Iranian HIV/AIDS Research Center in Tehran and 117 matched healthy controls. The serumsamples were checked with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for anti HTLV-1/2. Results: A total of 180 HIV positive patients with mean age 36.9±9.2 years and 117 matched controls were enrolled in the study. All cases and controls were negative for HTLV-1/2 infection.Conclusion: HTLV-1/2 infection is negligible in HIV infected patients in Tehran, Iran, although intravenous drug use is the most common route of HIV transmission in our study subjects

Keywords:

HTLV-1 , HTLV-2 , Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)