HIV 2: A Benign Onlooker or A Subtle Threat?
Published: May 1, 2014 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2014/.4340
Ekadashi Rajni Sabharwal, Shweta Gupta, Gaurav Dalela
1. Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology, Mahatma Gandhi Medical College, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India.
2. Professor & Head, Department of Microbiology, Mahatma Gandhi Medical College, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India.
3. Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology, Jhalawar Medical College, Jhalawar, Rajasthan, India.
Correspondence
Dr. Ekadashi Rajni Sabharwal,
202, Rajkiya Awaas, Malviya Nagar, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India.
Phone: 09462897600, E-mail: ravajni@yahoo.co.in
HIV-2 infection, originally discovered in West Africa, has now been found in many countries throughout the world including India. Despite it being a long acquaintance with the virus, not much is known about it conclusively. The present study was conducted at the ICTC of a tertiary care hospital catering to the needs of Jaipur and adjoining districts, to find the prevalence of HIV 2 among ICTC attendees. A total of 8190 clients accessed ICTC services during the study period, out of which 135 were HIV-seropositive, giving a prevalence of 1.64%. There was only a single positive case for HIV 2, giving a seroprevalence of 0.01% and none was reactive for antibodies of both HIV-1 and HIV-2. We suggest that in low prevalence areas like ours, assays capable of detecting both HIV 1 and HIV 2 must continue to be used to make our understanding of the deadly virus better and also make our combat more effective.
[
FULL TEXT ] | [ PDF]