Prevalência do vírus T linfotrópico humano tipo 1 e 2(HTLV-1/2) na população de São Luís-MA

Abstract

Human T-lymphotropic viruses (HTLV) belong to the Retroviridae family, Oncovirinae subfamily, Deltaretrovirus genus and Primate T-lymphotropicvírus specie.HTLV-1 has a preferential tropism for CD4+ T cells and HTLV-2 for CD8+ T cells. HTLV-1 was initially described as the etiologic agent of adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL) and later as the agent of a chronic neurodegenerative disease known as tropical spastic paraparesis/HTLV-1-associated myelopathy (HAM). The infection and the diseases associated with the virus are neglected, without an effective treatment, let alone a protective vaccine. In this work, we have the main objective of describing the prevalence, epidemiological, behavioral and risk aspects of HTLV-1/2 infection in different population strata assisted in the capital São Luís, State of Maranhão, Brazil, through an observational study of cross-sectional, descriptive and prevalence type of HTLV-1/2 infection. Of the 369 samples tested, eight were positive in the immunoenzymatic test (ELISA) and real-time PCR with markers for HTLV type 1 infection. Three positive individuals were new cases, and therefore used to calculate the 0.81% prevalence of HTLV-1 infection, the remaining positive individuals were results of an active search for suspected HTLV cases. Age, Place of Birth and Income were statistically significant factors. In this study, we observed that the prevalence of HTLV-1 is higher only in adults, especially in the elderly. Positive patients have a mean age of 53.20 (± 9.86) years, with a predominance of females (75%). Most patients diagnosed with HTLV-1 are from cities from the countryside of the state and the variable low income (up to one minimum wage). This is the first population-based study in São Luís designed to assess the prevalence of HTLV-1 infection. Considering the high prevalence of the HTLV1 virus, screening for this virus is justified, as there is a possibility of virus transmission and prophylactic measures are simple and efficient.