Human T lymphotrophic virus-I (HTLV-I) infection in patients with unclassifiable dermatitis in central Kerala, south India: a preliminary study.

OBJECTIVE We have conducted a preliminary serostudy to confirm the presence of this virus in cases of dermatitis of unknown aetiology and among individuals with sexually transmitted infections (STI) in central Kerala. METHODS 45 consecutive patients who attended the dermatology clinic of Medical College Kottayam with extensive dermatitis that could not be clinically classified into any known clinical entity and 37 consecutive patients who presented to the sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic were enrolled for the study. Serum/plasma samples were screened for anti-HTLV-I antibody. Reactive and indeterminate samples were confirmed by an immunoblot. RESULTS Among 37 STD clinic attendants, none had antibody to HTLV-I while two individuals (4.44%) among the 45 with dermatitis had antibody to HTLV-I. CONCLUSIONS Our study proves the presence of HTLV-I in a subset of individuals with poorly defined dermatitis in Kerala. Further larger studies are necessary to assess the extent of this problem and its relation to STI in Kerala.