Prevalence of Anti-HTLV-1 Antibodies in Sera From 153 Cases of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

Letters to the EditorPrevalence of Anti-HTLV-1 Antibodies in Sera From 153 Cases of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Awad A. SaeedFRCPath Awad A. Saeed Department of Pathology, Riyadh Armed Forces Military Hospital, P.O. Box 7879, Riyadh 11159, Saudi Arabia Search for more papers by this author Published Online:1 Nov 1991https://doi.org/10.5144/0256-4947.1991.717bSectionsPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload citationTrack citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmail AboutIntroductionTo the Editor: Sheth et al [1] have presented serological evidence of HTLV-1 prevalence among non-Hodgkin's lymphoma patients in Saudi Arabia, basing their results solely on a screening enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). However, commercial screening assays are relatively unrefined, and false positive reactions occur frequently [2]. Without adequate verification of the reported eight positive sera by additional and more specific serological tests such as Western blot, radioimmunoprecipitation assay (RIPA), or even both [3], the significance of their serological findings remains doubtful.The confirmatory tests are available either commercially or in reference laboratories, and their use in this instance is warranted for diagnostic and epidemiological reasons, especially for blood donors[4]. Further study is needed to prove the case.ARTICLE REFERENCES:1. Sheth KV, Amer M, Al-Sedairy S, Abdulatif MA. "Prevalence of anti-HTLV-1 antibodies in sera from 153 cases of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma" . Ann Saudi Med. 1990; 10: 626–8. Google Scholar2. Weber JN, Banatvala N, Clayden S, et al. "Infections in Papua New Guinea: evidence for serologic false positivity" . J Infect Dis. 1989; 159: 1025–8. Google Scholar3. Fang CT, Williams AE, Sandler SG, et al. "Detection of antibodies to human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1)" . Transfusion. 1988; 28: 179–83. Google Scholar4. Anon. "Licensure of screening tests for antibody to human T-lymphotropic virus type 1" . MMWR. 1988; 37: 736–40. Google Scholar Previous article Next article FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 11, Issue 6November 1991 Metrics History Published online1 November 1991 InformationCopyright © 1991, Annals of Saudi MedicinePDF download