BackgroundMen who have sex with men (MSM) are more vulnerable to blood-borne infections and/or sexually-transmitted infections (STI). This study was conducted to estimate the prevalences of mono and co-infections of HIV-1 and other blood-borne/STIs in a sample of MSM in Campinas, Brazil.MethodsResponding Driven Sampling (RDS) was used for recruitment of MSM. Serum samples collected from 558 MSM were analyzed for the presence of serological markers for HIV-1, HBV, HCV, HTLV, HPV-16/18, and T. pallidum infections.ResultsThe highest prevalences of infection in serum samples were found for HPV-16 and 18 (31.9% and 20.3%, respectively). Approximately 8% of the study population showed infection with HIV-1, and within that group, 27.5% had recently become infected with HIV-1. HBV infection and syphilis were detected in 11.4% and 10% of the study population, respectively, and the rates of HTLV and HCV infection were 1.5% and 1%, respectively. With the exception of HTLV, all other studied infections were usually found as co-infections rather then mono-infections. The rates of co-infection for HCV, HPV-18, and HIV-1 were the highest among the studied infections (100%, 83%, and 85%, respectively). Interestingly, HTLV infection was usually found as a mono-infection in the study group, whereas HCV was found only as a co-infection.ConclusionsThe present findings highlight the need to educate the MSM population concerning their risk for STIs infections and methods of prevention. Campaigns to encourage vaccination against HBV and HPV could decrease the rates of these infections in MSM.
BACKGROUND Occult hepatitis B virus (HBV)-characterized by the absence of detectable HBsAg in the presence of HBV DNA-represents a potential threat for blood safety. OBJECTIVES This study was conducted with the aim to investigate the serological and molecular characterization of occult HBV infection (OBI) among blood donors in Mozambique. METHODS 1,502 blood donors were tested for HBsAg. All HBsAg-negative individuals were tested for HBV DNA. Antibodies against HBV core, surface and HBe antigen (anti-HBc, anti-HBs, HBeAg) were measured in HBV DNA positive individuals. FINDINGS 1435 serum samples were HBsAg negative and 16 positive for HBV DNA, 14 confirmed to have OBI, corresponding to a frequency of 0.98%. Of the 14 OBI infections identified, 13/14 (92.8%) were positive for anti-HBc, 4/14 (28.5%) for anti-HBs, and no samples were reactive for HBeAg. Of the 14 OBI cases, nine samples (64.2%) were sequenced for the S/P region. Eight samples (88.9%) belonged to genotype A1 and one (11.1%) to genotype E. One escape mutation (T123A) associated with OBI and various amino acid substitutions for genotype A1 and E were observed. MAIN CONCLUSIONS Our results show the importance of using nucleic acid amplification test to detect occult hepatitis B infection in blood donors in Mozambique.
A community survey of human T cell lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) in Montserrat, West Indies, identified 22 instances in which 2 HTLV-I-seropositive adults lived within 60 m of each other (close pairs), compared with 7.8 expected (P < .001). Five of these close pairs were mother-offspring or husband-wife. The remaining 17 pairs were of unrelated members in separate households. The percentages of male-female (41%), female-female (41%), and male-male (18%) types in these 17 pairs were very similar to those among the 1377 similarly defined pairs in which neither or only 1 member was seropositive, affording no support for extramarital heterosexual activity as an explanation for the clustering observed. Thus, the demography of HTLV-I was not accounted for completely by sexual and mother-to-offspring transmission. The predominance of clustering of unrelated HTLV-I-seropositive individuals in locations with high mosquito infestation raised the possibility of sporadic transmission of HTLV-I by hematophagous insects.
The focus of this qualitative study is upon 15 Grade 12 students situated in an English Communications (ECM) classroom in rural Nova Scotia and the impact a daily classroom circle had upon their academic engagement. ECM is intended for students who may require further support to develop their skills as readers, writers, and language users as they enter the job market or community colleges. There is no formal curriculum for ECM, and often the demographics of such classrooms are comprised of some of the province’s most vulnerable populations. In this paper, we demonstrate the impact the daily classroom circle had upon late adolescents’ understanding of themselves as thinkers with ideas to share. Overall, we see this study as significant for teachers in high-poverty contexts, particularly the importance of using a classroom circle as a consistent space to communicate elevated expectations for students who have experienced academic struggles. Keywords: adolescent literacy; circle routines; qualitative case study; restorative practices
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