Seroprevalence of Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and Human T-Cell Lymphotropic Virus Infections in HIV-Infected Patients in Sierra Leone

• Published in: The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene 2019-01, Vol.100 (6), p.1521-1524
• Main Authors: Yendewa, George A, Sahr, Foday, Aguilera, Antonio, Lakoh, Sulaiman, Sesay, Momodu, Deen, Gibrilla F, Patiño, Lucia, Poveda, Eva, Salata, Robert A
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Antiretroviral drugs; CD4 Lymphocyte Count; Coinfection; Female; Health risk assessment; Hepatitis; Hepatitis B; Hepatitis B - blood; Hepatitis B - complications; Hepatitis B - epidemiology; Hepatitis C; Hepatitis C - blood; Hepatitis C - complications; Hepatitis C - epidemiology; HIV; HIV Infections - complications; HIV Infections - epidemiology; HTLV-I Infections - blood; HTLV-I Infections - complications; HTLV-I Infections - epidemiology; HTLV-II Infections - blood; HTLV-II Infections - complications; HTLV-II Infections - epidemiology; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Seroepidemiologic Studies; Sierra Leone - epidemiology; Viruses; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0002-9637; 1476-1645
• DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.18-1001

HIV coinfection with hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human T-cell lymphotropic viruses 1 and 2 (HTLV-1 and HTLV-2) is common because of shared transmission routes. There is no published data on the prevalence of these infections in people living with HIV in Sierra Leone. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 211 HIV-positive patients aged ≥ 18 years in Freetown, Sierra Leone, in November 2017. Plasma samples were analyzed using the chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay (Architect System, Abbott ARCHITECT Analyzer, Abbott Park, IL. The majority were female (63.5%), with median age 36 years (interquartile range [IQR]: 32-44) and median CD4 count of 396 cells/µL (IQR: 214-534). Sixty patients (28.4%) were newly diagnosed and antiretroviral therapy (ART) naive; 151 patients (71.6%) were ART experienced. The prevalence of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), total anti-hepatitis B core antibody, and anti-HCV was 21.7%, 82.9%, and 4.3%, respectively. No cases of HTLV-1 or HTLV-2 were detected. Male gender ( = 0.004) and CD4 < 350 cells/µL ( = 0.017) were associated with the HBsAg positive status.