Rheumatological Manifestations in People Living with Human T-Lymphotropic Viruses 1 and 2 (HTLV-1 and HTLV-2) in Northern Brazil

Rheumatological Manifestations in People Living with Human T-Lymphotropic Viruses 1 and 2 (HTLV-1 and HTLV-2) in Northern Brazil

Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 (HTLV-1) infection has been associated with inflammatory, autoimmune, and lymphoproliferative diseases with a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations. Among patients with inflammatory rheumatological disease manifestations, cases of rheumatoid arthritis, Sjögren’s syndr...

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Main Authors: Márcio Yutaka Tsukimata, Bianca Lumi Inomata da Silva, Leonn Mendes Soares Pereira, Bruno José Sarmento Botelho, Luciana Cristina Coelho Santos, Carlos David Araújo Bichara, Gabriel dos Santos Pereira Neto, Aline Cecy Rocha Lima, Francisco Erivan da Cunha Rodrigues, Natália Pinheiro André, Sarah Marques Galdino, Danniele Chagas Monteiro, Ludmila do Carmo de Souza Silva, Lourena Camila Oliveira Araújo, José Ronaldo Matos Carneiro, Rosana de Britto Pereira Cruz, Ricardo Ishak, Antonio Carlos Rosário Vallinoto, Bárbara Nascimento de Carvalho Klemz, Izaura Maria Vieira Cayres Vallinoto
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-06-01
Series:Viruses
Subjects:
human T-lymphotropic virus 1 (HTLV-1)
human T-lymphotropic virus 2 (HTLV-2)
rheumatic diseases
arthralgia
myalgia
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/17/7/874
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Summary:Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 (HTLV-1) infection has been associated with inflammatory, autoimmune, and lymphoproliferative diseases with a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations. Among patients with inflammatory rheumatological disease manifestations, cases of rheumatoid arthritis, Sjögren’s syndrome, polymyositis, and fibromyalgia, among others, have been reported. Another common feature of rheumatological diseases is the presence of joint manifestations, such as arthralgia and arthritis. In the present study, we sought to determine the laboratory profile and clinical rheumatological manifestations of people living with HTLV-1/2 residing in a metropolitan area in the Brazilian Amazon. A total of 957 individuals were screened for HTLV-1/2 infection by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and samples from seropositive individuals were subjected to infection confirmation by Western blotting or quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Individuals with confirmed HTLV-1 and HTLV-2 infection were clinically evaluated for signs and symptoms of rheumatological diseases. Of the 957 individuals tested, 69 were positive for HTLV-1/2 infection, with 56 confirmed cases of HTLV-1 infection (5.9%), 12 of HTLV-2 infection (1.2%), and 1 classified as undetermined (0.1%). After clinical screening, 15 infected individuals with complaints suggestive of rheumatological disease were selected for evaluation by a rheumatologist (11 with HTLV-1 infection (1.1%) and 4 with HTLV-2 infection (0.4%)). The predominant pain pattern was symmetrical polyarthralgia, with large joints predominantly being affected. The diseases diagnosed were psoriatic arthritis, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, and regional pain syndromes. Antinuclear antibody (ANA) positivity was observed in two patients. Our findings confirm that HTLV-1 infection is associated with rheumatological disease manifestations and highlight the novel finding of cases of HTLV-2 infection in patients with rheumatoid arthritis symptoms.
ISSN:1999-4915

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