TT virus is present in a high frequency of Italian hemophilic patients transfused with plasma-derived clotting factor concentrates.
The prevalence of the blood-borne TT virus (TTV) in Italian hemophiliacs treated with different preparations of factor VIII was determined. Of the 178 hemophilic patients (mean age, 29 years), TTV-DNA was found in 123 (69%), in comparison to 22 of 100 (22%) blood donors (P <.0001). Of the 123 patients who tested positive for TTV, significant numbers were also infected with human hepatitis viruses and/or human immunodeficiency virus (HIV): 31% had TTV and hepatitis C virus (HCV), 22% had TTV, and at least 2 of the 4 known human blood-borne viruses tested, whereas 15% had TTV alone. The risk of acquiring TTV alone was only slightly higher in recipients of unmodified plasma factor concentrates (78%, odds ratio, 1.24; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.27 to 5.79) than in patients treated with virus inactivated concentrates (67%), whereas the risk was significantly lower in recipients of recombinant factors (11%, odds ratio, 0.09; 95% CI, 0.01 to 0.52). Serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels were elevated in 2 of 27 patients (7%) with TTV alone compared with 43 of 56 patients (77%) coinfected with TTV and HCV and compared with 16 of 21 patients (76%) with HCV alone. Taken together, these results indicate that TTV frequently infects Italian hemophiliacs treated with plasma-derived factor VIII concentrates, both unmodified and virus-inactivated. Our results do not suggest a causal effect of TTV on chronic liver disease in these patients.
Chen
B P
BP
Sentinel BioSciences, Inc, Palo Alto, CA, USA.
Rumi
M G
MG
Colombo
M
M
Lin
Y H
YH
Ramaswamy
L
L
Luna
J
J
Liu
J K
JK
Prati
D
D
Mannucci
P M
PM
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001779:Blood Coagulation Factors / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004267:DNA Viruses / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005260:Female; D006467:Hemophilia A / Q000628:therapy* / Q000821:virology*; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*
D001779:Blood Coagulation Factors