Seroprevalence of Cytomegalovirus and Toxoplasma in People Living With HIV Referred to the Behavioral Diseases Counseling Center in Tehran.

Abstract

According to data from the WHO and CDC, Toxoplasma gondii is found worldwide, with a higher prevalence in regions with warm, humid climates; the highest reported rates in the general population reach 90%. The prevalence of cytomegalovirus infection among the general population of Iran has been estimated at 5.2%. According to the existence of insufficient data on the seroprevalence of Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections in Tehran and the Center for Behavioral Diseases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)+ and toxoplasmosis among the people of Imam Khomeini Hospital, as well as the grave and fatal complications that threaten these infections, to identification, prevention and timely treatment of People Living with HIV (PLWH), general knowledge of its prevalence in our country is essential. This project was a cross-sectional study of PLWH referred to the Behavioral Diseases Counseling Center of Imam Khomeini Hospital in Tehran in 2018. A number was assigned to each patient who visited this year, and 348 were selected from this group. Anti-Cytomegalovirus Immunoglobulin G (IgG Anti CMV), and Anti-Toxoplasmosis Immunoglobulin G (IgG Anti-Toxoplasmosis) levels in serum were measured alongside demographic information, HIV transmission routes, disease duration, cluster of differentiation 4 (CD4) count, viral load, and Hepatitis B Virus and Hepatitis C Virus status of participants. The collected data were entered into IBM SPSS Statistics software version 25. The data were extracted from the patients' files to support the research aim. The seroprevalence of cytomegalovirus and toxoplasmosis was 99.4% and 41.7%, respectively. Due to cytomegalovirus's high prevalence, it has been impossible to investigate the impact of influential factors, and the efforts have been ineffective. A statistically significant relationship was seen between factors of hepatitis B serum level and marital status with the prevalence of toxoplasmosis; more than half of participants who were married were infected with Toxoplasma in comparison with the unaffected 28.2% (P<0.001). A larger portion of participants with positive HBV test results were infected with Toxoplasma, in contrast to 39% in the HBV-negative group (P=0.017). But no relationship with gender was observed (42.8% vs 39%). In this study, a significant association was observed between serum levels of positive hepatitis B (Hepatitis B Surface Antigen or Hepatitis B Core Antibody) and anti-toxoplasmosis antibody. Given the 99% prevalence of CMV in the population, it is recommended to conduct further research on demographic factors, such as residence and income level, or on the reliability and accuracy of the laboratory testing kits at this facility.