Gender differences in Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus infection in a population with schistosomiasis in rural China.
Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is the causal agent of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS),  a common cancer in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. The risk factors for KSHV  infection have been extensively studied for Western countries but remain largely undefined for other  parts of the world. Schistosomiasis, caused by Schistosoma japonicum infection, was recently identified  as a cofactor for KSHV infection in rural Egypt. In this study, we examined the seroprevalence of KSHV  in a population along the Yangtze River in China that has a high incidence of schistosomiasis. KSHV  seroprevalence in subjects with schistosomiasis was slightly higher than that in subjects without  schistosomiasis, but the difference was not statistically significant (8.4% versus 6.6%; P = 0.204).  However, after adjusting for gender, KSHV seroprevalence in men with schistosomiasis was found to be  significantly higher than that in men without schistosomiasis (8.4% versus 2.8%; odds ratio [OR],  3.170; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.501-6.694; P = 0.002). Compared to men, women showed  significantly higher seroprevalence of KSHV (5.9% versus 9.3%; OR, 1.621; 95% CI, 1.084-2.425;  P = 0.019).
Department of Microbiology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China.
Bishi
B
Fu
Rongge
R
Yang
Fan
F
Xia
Baolin
B
Li
Xinxing
X
Ouyang
Shou-Jiang
SJ
Gao
Linding
L
Wang
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D019288:Herpesvirus 8, Human / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012552:Schistosomiasis / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D055815:Young Adult