Background: Human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is the causative agent of several disorders including adult T-cell leukemia, HTLV-1-associated myelopathy and tropical spastic paralysis. HTLV-1 can be transmitted through different routes such as: blood transfusion, needle sharing, breast-feeding and heterosexual intercourse. This study was carried out to detect HTLV-1 antibody in patients with thalassemia major as a high-risk group versus healthy individuals in the cities of Zahedan and Zaboul in 2001.
Materials and Methods: This historical cohort study was conducted on 379 individuals (190 sufferers of B-thalassemia and 189 healthy persons) from cities of Zahedan and Zaboul. 3ml peripheral blood was collected from each person. Sera were separated and ELISA was used to detect anti-HTLV-1 antibody. In positive samples, the virus type was determined by Western blotting. The results were statistically analysed by student's t-test.
Results: Antibodies against HTLV-1 were detected in 1.6% of thalassemic patients and 0.5% of control group. None of the positive individuals were received blood from Khorasan province and there were no relationship among age, sex, family relation between father and mother, thalasemic patient in the family and history of travel to Khorasan province with HTLV-1. Conclusion: The results indicated that the main route of HTLV-1 infection in Iran is probably blood transfusion. Therefore, it is recommended that all the blood donors be screened for HTLV-1 in order to prevent viral infection.
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مقاله پژوهشی |
دریافت: 1387/7/8 | پذیرش: 1382/3/25 | انتشار: 1382/3/25