title: Risk factors for human T-cell lymphotropic virus types I and II (HTLV-I and -II) in blood donors: the Retrovirus Epidemiology Donor Study. NHLBI Retrovirus Epidemiology Donor Study.
abstract: In the United States, blood donors have been routinely screened for human T-cell lymphotropic virus (HTLV) since 1988. HTLV-I and -II seropositive blood donors have been identified through confirmatory testing at five participating blood centers and frequency-matched seronegative controls provided information on potential HTLV sociodemographic, parenteral, and sexual risk factors during structured interviews. After adjustment, low educational attainment; accidental needlesticks or cuts; prior blood transfusion; > or = 7 sex partners; and a sex partner from an HTLV-I endemic area were significantly associated with both HTLV-I and -II. Gender did not modify the odds ratios (OR) in the final logistic regression models, despite apparent male-female differences in gender-specific bivariable analysis. Injection drug use (IDU) or having sex with an IDUs were significant risks for HTLV-II, but not for HTLV-I. The OR for donors who had IDU sex partners was 20.6 times higher than those who did not. For IDUs, the OR was increased 10.5 times over nonusers. Abortion was a significant HTLV-II risk factor for women. Our findings indicate that IDU and sex with IDUs are important risk factors for HTLV-II transmission, even among low-risk populations such as blood donors.
authors.affiliation: Westat, Inc., Rockville, Maryland 20850, U.S.A.
authors.forename: G B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Schreiber
authors.forename: E L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Horton
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Garfein
authors.forename: H C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Chien
authors.forename: C C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Nass
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001519:Behavior; D001782:Blood Donors; D006800:Deltaretrovirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D015368:Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D015367:Human T-lymphotropic virus 2 / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology