PREVALENCE OF HUMAN T-LYMPHOTROPIC VIRUS IN CIVILIAN APPLICANTS FOR THE UNITED-STATES ARMED-FORCES

Background. The wide range in human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV) seropr evalences reported worldwide has made estimates of seroprevalence diff icult in unique populations. In this study, the seropositivity of youn g adult civilian applicants for the US Armed Forces was determined. Me thods. Serum samples from nine geographic regions were screened by an Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA), and repeatedly reactive sam ples were further tested by Western blot and radioimmunoprecipitation. Specimens were scored as positive when antibody to gag (p24) and env (gp46 or gp68) were detected. Results. Of the 43 750 samples analyzed, 18 were positive for HTLV antibodies. Ten (55%) were from males and e ight (45%) were from females. Nine (90%) of the males and seven (87.5% ) of the females were Black. Twelve of the positive samples (66.6%) we re from the New York City region, which represented only 18.8% of the sample population. Conclusions. The overall HTLV seroprevalence of civ ilian applicants for the US Armed forces was 0.41 per 1000. This was h igher than the seroprevalence reported for volunteer blood donors.