Soriano V, Gutierrez M, Caballero E, Fernandez J, Aguilera A, Glz-Lahoz J; National Conference on Human Retroviruses and Related Infections.

Program Abstr Second Natl Conf Hum Retrovir Relat Infect Natl Conf Hum Retrovir Relat Infect 2nd 1995 Wash DC. 1995 Jan 29-Feb 2; 114.

Instituto Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.

HIV-2 infection is unfrequently recognized outside West Africa; and most of the cases identified in Europe and North America correspond to African immigrants. The first cases of HIV-2 infection in Spain were identified in 1988, in 3 West African immigrants living in Barcelona. Since then and up to September 1994, 48 HIV-2+ individuals have been identified in Span. Eight cases (16%) of HIV-2 infection have been reported in natives; however, all of them but 2 likely acquired the infection in endemic areas. The first native individuals who have been infected within Spain were identified in 1993. One was a prostitute from Barcelona who had been engaged in sex with multiple African partners. The other was a 71-year old bisexual male from Guipuzcoa. To date, 4 natives have developed AIDS, and only one still is alive. It is noteworthy that the mean age at time of AIDS diagnosis was 62 for these 4 patients, higher than the observed in Spain for AIDS due to HIV-1 (mean age 32). Most of HIV-2-infected immigrants were living in the two large Spanish urban areas: Madrid (20 cases) and Barcelona (16 cases), where Africans have increased in the last years. Globally, heterosexual exposure seems to be the major source of HIV-2 in this population, since only two bisexual men and one mother-to-child transmitted infections have been recognized. One of the five identified HIV-2- infected women is a prostitute from the Cape Verde islands, and the mother of a 6-yr-old HIV-2+ child. Because more than 60% of the HIV-2+ West African immigrants in this study reported heterosexual contacts with native prostitutes, mainly poor-level and frequently IDUs, the risk of introduction of HIV-2 into the Spanish IDU population should be stressed. Conclusion: although HIV-2 infection is present in Spain, it is still associated mainly with West African immigrants. However native individuals who had sex partners either from or in endemic areas represent a second high-risk population.

Publication Types:

• Meeting Abstracts

Keywords:

• Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
• Africa
• Child
• Emigration and Immigration
• Europe
• Female
• HIV-1
• HIV-2
• Humans
• Male
• North America
• Prostitution
• Research
• Spain

Other ID:

• 95920354

UI: 102213303

From Meeting Abstracts