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HTLV‐I infection in selected populations in Australia and the western Pacific region
Author(s) -
Nicholson Suellen R,
Efandis Theordora,
Dimitrakakis Mary,
Karopoulos Anna,
Lee Helen,
Gust Ian D
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1992.tb137007.x
Subject(s) - haemophilia , virology , antibody , serology , medicine , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , geography , demography , immunology , pediatrics , sociology
The prevalence of infection with human T lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV‐I) in 19 975 blood samples from Australia and the western Pacific was determined by measuring the presence of specific antibody (anti‐HTLV‐I) by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with confirmation by western blot and/or radioimmunoprecipitation techniques. In Australia no evidence of HTLV‐I infection was found in injecting drug users, patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), subjects attending a sexually transmitted diseases clinic, female prostitutes, or transfusion recipients. A low prevalence of infection was detected in people with haemophilia (0.5%) and in male homosexuals (0.5%–1%). No antibody was detected in sera from Vanuatu, Kiribati, American Samoa, the Cook Islands, New Caledonia, the Federated States of Micronesia, French Polynesia and Fiji, but a low frequency of anti‐HTLV‐I was detected in sera from the Solomon Islands (1.2%) and Nauru (0.6%).