High Rate of Human T-Cell Lymphotropic Virus-2 in Patients with HIV in the Peruvian Amazon.

Abstract

HTLV-1/2 in people with HIV (PWH) has been little studied in the Peruvian Amazon, an endemic area for both viruses. We aimed to estimate its prevalence and describe the main clinical and epidemiological features of individuals with HTLV-HIV co-existence. We conducted a cross-sectional study (October-December 2023) at the Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine at the Regional Hospital of Loreto in Iquitos. We performed a screening test (recombinant HTLV I+II ELISA) and confirmed the results with INNO-LIA. Among 293 PWH analyzed, 14 (4.8%) were HTLV-positive: 1/293 was HTLV-1-positive (0.3%; 95% CI 0.06-0.9), 11/293 were HTLV-2-positive (3.8%; 95% CI 2.1-6.8), and 2/293 were non-typeable (0.7%; 95% CI 0.1-2.7). Compared with HIV-monoinfected individuals, superinfected patients were older (55 vs. 39 years; p = 0.001). Low education was more frequent in the univariate analysis (35.7% vs. 15.4%; p = 0.05) but was not retained in the multivariable model. In conclusion, HIV-HTLV-2 co-existence is relatively common (~4%) in the Peruvian Amazon, particularly among older individuals, highlighting the need for targeted screening and prevention strategies. Integrating HTLV testing into routine HIV clinic workflows, along with brief and focused counseling for superinfected patients, may help optimize follow-up and care.