Seroprevalence of Epstein-Barr Virus in HIV-Infected Patients, A Case Control Study

Patients with AIDS are at risk for contagious infections such as Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of EBV infection in HIV-infected patients and compare it with healthy individuals in Hamadan province in the west of Iran. In a case-control study, 61 HIV-infected patients and 62 healthy individuals were enrolled. EBV viral capsid antigens (VCA) IgM and IgG antibodies were measured by chemiluminescent immunoassay system and CD4 cell count was measured by flow cytometry. Data were analyzed using SPSS (version 16). All HIV-infected patients (100%) had positive EBV VCA-IgG antibody while 57(91.9%) in the controls were positive (P = 0.02). There was no statistically significant relationship between CD4 cell count and the prevalence of EBV infection in HIV-infected patients (P = 0.4). However, there was a statistically significant relationship between the reduced CD4 cell count and rising EBV VCA-IgG antibody titer (P = 0.001). Moreover, there was no significant association between the prevalence of EBV infection and variables of age, sex and anti-retrovirus therapy in HIV-infected patients (P > 0.05). There was also a significant association between the antibody titer and antiretroviral therapy (P = 0.004). The high prevalence of EBV infection in HIV-infected patients, especially in the patients with a low CD4 count, could lead to high risk of EBV complications.