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Chronic high level parasitemia in HIV-infected individuals with or without visceral leishmaniasis in an endemic area in North-West Ethiopia: potential superspreaders? | Journal Article / Case Report/Series | MSF Science Portal
Journal Article
|Case Report/Series

Chronic high level parasitemia in HIV-infected individuals with or without visceral leishmaniasis in an endemic area in North-West Ethiopia: potential superspreaders?

van Griensven J, van Henten S, Kibret A, Kassa M, Beyene H, Abdellati S, de Hondt A, Adriaensen W, Vogt F, Pareyn M, Ritmeijer KKD, Diro EGJ
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Abstract
BACKGROUND
HIV patients with recurrent visceral leishmaniasis (VL) could potentially drive Leishmania transmission in areas with anthroponotic transmission such as East-Africa, but studies are lacking. Leishmania parasitemia has been used as proxy for infectiousness.

METHODS
This study is nested within the PreLeish prospective cohort study, following a total of 490 HIV infected individuals free of VL at enrollment for up to 24-37 months in North-West Ethiopia. Blood Leishmania PCR was done systematically. This case series reports on ten HIV-coinfected individuals with chronic VL (≥3 VL episodes during follow-up) for up to 37 months, and three individuals with asymptomatic Leishmania infection for up to 24 months.

RESULTS
All ten chronic VL cases were male, on antiretroviral treatment, with 0-11 relapses before enrollment. Median baseline CD4 counts were 82 cells/µL. They displayed three to six VL treatment episodes over a period up to 37 months. Leishmania blood PCR levels were strongly positive for almost the entire follow-up time (median Ct value 26 (IQR 23-30), including during periods between VL treatment. Additionally, we describe three HIV-infected individuals with asymptomatic Leishmania infection and without VL history, with equally strong Leishmania parasitemia over a period of up to 24 months without developing VL. All were on antiretroviral treatment at enrollment, with baseline CD4 counts ranging from 78 to 350 cells/µL.

CONCLUSION
These are the first data on chronic parasitemia in HIV-infected individuals from L donovani endemic areas. HIV patients with asymptomatic and symptomatic Leishmania infection could potentially be highly infectious and constitute Leishmania superspreaders. Xenodiagnosis studies are required to confirm infectiousness.

Countries

Ethiopia

Subject Area

kala azarHIV/AIDS

Languages

English
DOI
10.1093/cid/ciae002
Published Date
09 Jan 2024
PubMed ID
38193647
Journal
Clinical Infectious Diseases
Volume | Issue | Pages
Online ahead of print, Pages ciae002
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