Last update:
   03-Jun-2018
 

Arch Hellen Med, 35(3), May-June 2018, 400-404

ORIGINAL PAPER

Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence and related risk factors in patients with HIV in Iran

H. Sedigh Ebrahim-Saraie,1 H. Heidari,1 S.M. Mousavi,2 H. Asefi,3 A.R. Hassan Abadi,4 P. Afsar-Kazerooni,4 M. Motamedifar1,4
1Department of Bacteriology and Virology, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz
2Department of Parasitology and Mycology, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz
3Shooshtari Hospital, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz
4Shiraz HIV/AIDS Research Center, Institute of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

OBJECTIVE To determinate the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii among patients with HIV, and other probable risk factors associated with this situation, including demographic and clinical factors.

METHOD This retrospective study was carried out on 246 HIV positive patients at the Shiraz HIV/AIDS research center, in Southwest Iran, in the two years beginning March 2012. Seropositivity for HIV was diagnosed initially by the enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and subsequently confirmed by the Western Blot test. Detection of IgG antibodies against T. gondii was performed using an ELISA kit in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.

RESULTS Of 246 patients with HIV, the seroprevalence of anti-T. gondii IgG antibody was 20.7% (51 cases). The mean CD4+ lymphocyte count among seropositive patients was lower than that of the seronegative group, 335±213 vs 390±258 cells/mm3, respectively. The frequency of seropositive cases with a CD4+ lymphocyte count <200/μL cells/mm3 was higher than that of seronegative cases, 27.5 vs 24.6%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS These findings highlight the importance of serological tests to investigate the consequences of T. gondii infection among patients with HIV, in addition to the CD4+ lymphocyte count, which alone is not a criterion of infection.

Key words: CD4+ lymphocytes, HIV/AIDS, Iran, Toxoplasma gondii, Toxoplasmosis.

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