title: Prevalence of HIV infection and AIDS in Egypt over four years of surveillance (1986-1990).
abstract: Serosurveys were conducted from April 1986 to March 1990 to determine the prevalence of HIV-1 infections among Egyptians and foreigners. Sera from 29,261 high risk individuals and blood or blood product donors in Egypt, and from 10,326 foreigners were tested for HIV-1 antibodies by a recombinant HIV-1 and a recombinant combination HIV-1/HIV-2 enzyme immunoassay (EIA). Any serum found to be repeatedly reactive by EIA was tested by Western blot for confirmation of HIV-1 infection. The overall prevalence of HIV-1 infection among the Egyptians was 0.18% (54/29,261); of which 4.8% (28/582) were blood and factor VIII recipients, 0.15% (3/1961) drug addicts, 0.18% (3/1650) fever of unknown origin patients, 0.23% (6/2602) sexually transmitted disease patients, 1.9% (5/269) HIV-1 contacts, 0.07% (7/9778) international travellers, and 0.02% (2/12,070) blood/product donors. Evidence of HIV-1 infection was not demonstrated among 349 prostitutes. The prevalence of HIV-1 antibody among foreigners was 0.97% (100/10,326), who were mainly (94%) from other African countries. Among the total 54 HIV infected Egyptians, 20 developed AIDS, and at least 12 have died. Only one of the 100 infected foreigners was diagnosed with AIDS. While the number of AIDS cases has increased in Egypt over 18 months October 1988-March 1990, the overall prevalence of new HIV infections has decreased since 1988 and endemic transmission has not been documented in Egypt.
authors.affiliation: US Naval Medical Research Unit No. 3, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Watts
authors.forename: N T
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Constantine
authors.forename: M F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Sheba
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kamal
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Callahan
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Kilpatrick
mesh_terms: D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001782:Blood Donors; D001803:Blood Transfusion; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004534:Egypt / Q000453:epidemiology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005169:Factor VIII / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D011477:Sex Work; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000150:complications; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous / Q000150:complications; D014195:Travel
chemical_list: D015483:HIV Antibodies; D005169:Factor VIII