Abstract
BackgroundHuman retroviruses HIV and HTLV share transmission routes. HIV widely spread in Spain during the 80 s through injection drug use and sex, and nowadays HIV rates in Spain account for one of the largest in Europe. In contrast, HTLV-1 is not endemic in Spain, despite hosting huge numbers of migrants from highly endemic regions. Herein, we report the rate and main features of the HIV-HTLV co-infected population in Spain. MethodsA national registry exists in Spain for HTLV since year 1989. Data from standardized case report forms and one centralized lab repository were reviewed, especially for the subset with HTLV-HIV co-infection. ResultsUp to December 2018, a total of 369 individuals with HTLV-1 had been diagnosed in Spain. 64% of the population were females, and Latin American individuals accounted for 64.5%. Classical HTLV-associated illnesses were found in 12.7% (myelopathy) and 7.6% (leukemia).HIV coinfection was found in 12 (3.2%). Of those, 3 patients (25%) were female and 39 (75%) were of non-Spanish origin. All but two harbored HIV-1 subtype B, being non-B variants found in the two West Africans. Exposure had been sexual in most cases, being 4 homosexual men. Seven HTLV-HIV co-infected patients had developed AIDS and two had developed myelopathy. There was no evidence for increased HTLV-1 clinical pathogenicity due to HIV coinfection. ConclusionHIV coinfection is infrequent (<5%) among HTLV-1 carriers in Spain. More than half of co-infected patients come from Latin America. Sexual contact is the most frequent risk behavior, being MSM one third of cases. Late diagnosis explains the high rate (9/12) of clinical manifestations in our HIV-HTLV co-infected population.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.