HTLV-1 infection among Latin American pregnant women living in Spain

Encinas, Begoña ; Benito, Rafael (Universidad de Zaragoza) ; Rojo, Silvia ; Reina, Gabriel ; Montiel, Natalia ; Aguilera, Antonio ; Eiros, José María ; García-Costa, Juan ; Ortega, Diego (Universidad de Zaragoza) ; Arco, Irene ; Hernánez-Batancor, Araceli ; Soriano, Vicente ; de-Mendoza, Carmen ; Calderón, E. ; Rodríguez-Iglesias, M. ; Trujillo, T. ; Viciana, Cádiz I. ; Cabezas, Málaga T. ; Lozano, Almería A. ; Fernández-Fuertes, E. ; Fernández, J.M. ; García, F. ; Algarate, S. ; Ducons, M. ; Roc, L. ; Cifuentes, C. ; Fernández-Baca, V. ; Fernández-Montero, J.V ; Maciá, M.D. ; Hernández-Betancor, A. ; Martín, A.M. ; Pena, M.J. ; Hernández, M. ; López-Lirola, A.M. ; Gómez-Sirvent, J.L. ; Copado, R. ; Cano, M.E. ; Eirós, J.M. ; Rodríguez, M. ; Gómez-Hernando, C. ; González-Praetorius, A. ; Rando, A. ; Force, L. ; Miró, E. ; Cebollero, A. ; Delgado, J.F. ; Rodríguez, G. ; Fernández-Pereira, L. ; Pereira, S. ; García, J. ; Arcay, R. ; Trigo, M. ; Diz, J. ; García-Campello, M. ; Cortizo, S. ; Pérez, S. ; Morano, L. ; Arazamendi, M. ; Salicio, Y. ; Ugalde, E. ; Nieto, M.C. ; Liendo, P. ; Goikoetxea, A.J. ; Ocete, M.D. ; Ramos, J.M. ; Escribano, I. ; Sauleda, S. ; Pirón, M. ; González, R. ; Richart, A. ; Barea, L. ; Jiménez, A. ; Blanco, L. ; Navarro, L. ; Ayerdi, O. ; Baza, B. ; Rodriguez, C. ; del-Romero, J. ; Galar, A. ; Aldamiz, T. ; Valeiro, M. ; Pérez, L. ; Rodríguez-Avial, I. ; Martín-Carbonero, L. ; Fernández-Ruiz, M. ; Parra, P. ; Redondo, N. ; Ruiz-Merlo, T. ; Pozuelo, M.J. ; Barreiro, P. ; Treviño, A. ; de-Jesús, F. ; Corral, O. ; Pintos, I. ; Moreno-Torres, V. ; Carrizo, P. ; Huertas, A. ; Vargas-Núñez, J.A.

Resumen: Objectives
Human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV) antenatal screening is not mandatory in Spain. Surveys conducted decades ago reported HTLV-1 seroprevalence rates of 0.2% among foreign pregnant women in Spain. The migrant flow to Spain from HTLV-1 endemic regions in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa has increased during the last decade. Currently, 25% of pregnant women in Spain are foreigners.
Methods
From January 2021 to October 2023 a cross-sectional study was carried out in all consecutive pregnant women attended at eleven Spanish clinics. A commercial enzyme immunoassay (EIA) was used for screening of serum HTLV-1/2 antibodies. Reactive samples were confirmed by immunoblot.
Results
A total of 9813 pregnant women with a median age of 34 years-old were examined. Native Spaniards were 6977 (76.5%). Of 2147 foreigners (23.5%), 903566 (9.9%) were Latin Americans, 416 (4.5%) North Africans, 293 (3.2%) from Romania, and 196 (2.1%) from sub-Saharan Africa. A total of 47 samples were EIA reactive but only five were confirmed as HTLV-1 positive using immunoblot. Infected women came from Paraguay, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Peru. All but one were primigravida, with ages ranging from 20 to 33 years-old. One was HIV-1 positive, and another was infected with Chlamydia trachomatis.
Conclusion
The overall seroprevalence for HTLV-1 among pregnant women in Spain is 0.05% but rises ten-fold (0.55%) among Latin Americans. This rate is higher than in surveys conducted decades ago. Our results support that anti-HTLV testing should be part of antenatal screening in Spain in pregnant women coming from Latin America, as it is already done with Chagas disease.

Idioma: Inglés

DOI: 10.1016/j.ijregi.2023.11.010

Año: 2024

Publicado en: IJID regions 10 (2024), 146-149
ISSN: 2772-7076

Financiación: info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/ISCIII/FIS/PI21-1717

Tipo y forma: Artículo (Versión definitiva)

Área (Departamento): Área Microbiología (Dpto. Microb.Ped.Radio.Sal.Pú.)