NO EVIDENCE OF OSTEOPOROSIS IN YOUNG HTLV-1-INFECTED CARRIERS

Osteoporosis has been reported among Human T-cell Lymphotropic Virus type 1 (HTLV-1) infected aged patients with HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) diagnosis. However, the association between osteoporosis and HTLV-1 infection remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the presence of bone disorders in young HTLV-1 asymptomatic individuals. A cross sectional study was carried out at the HTLV Reference Center in Salvador, Brazil. Forty-seven HTLV-1 infected asymptomatic and 108 healthy subjects aged between 20 to 45 years were included. Biochemical markers of bone metabolism were measured and bone mineral density (BMD) was determined at the femoral neck and at the lumbar spine (L1 -L4). Significant low BMD (Z-score <-1 ) was found in HTLV-1 infected individuals (1.177 ± 0.103) compared to control subjects (1.225 ± 0.146). In logistics regression analysis HTLV-1 infected subjects were more likely to have low BMD (OR = 3.48; 95%CI 1.29- 9.43) adjusted for low education and body mass index (BMI). Osteoporosis (Z-score <-2) was not found among HTLV-1-infected group. In conclusion, our results found a low BMD in patients infected with HTLV-1 compared to uninfected controls. However, osteoporosis was not observed. Further studies should be conducted to evaluate the relationship between HTLV-1-infection and low BMD.