HIV-1/2 indeterminate Western blot results: follow-up of asymptomatic blood donors in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil

• Main Authors: CARNEIRO-PROIETTI A.B.F., CUNHA I.W., SOUZA M.M., OLIVEIRA D.R., MESQUITA N.M., ANDRADE C.A., CATALAN-SOARES B.C., LIMA-MARTINS M.V.C., PROIETTI F.A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Universidade de São Paulo 1999-01-01
• Series: Revista do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo
• Subjects: HIV-1/2; Indeterminate Western blot; Blood donor; Risk behaviors
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0036-46651999000300004
• ISSN: 0036-4665; 1678-9946

The clinical and public health importance of indeterminate results in HIV-1/2 testing is still difficult to evaluate in volunteer blood donors. At Fundação Hemominas, HIV-1/2 ELISA is used as the screening test and, if reactive, is followed by Western blot (WB). We have evaluated 84 blood donors who had repeatedly reactive ELISA tests for HIV-1/2, but indeterminate WB results. Sixteen of the 84 donors (19.0%) had history of sexually transmitted diseases; 18/84 (21.4%) informed receiving or paying for sex; 3/84 (3.6%) had homosexual contact; 2/26 women (7.6%) had past history of multiple illegal abortions and 3/84 (3.6%) had been previously transfused. Four out of 62 donors (6.5%) had positive anti-nuclear factor (Hep2), with titles up to 1:640. Parasitological examination of the stool revealed eggs of S. mansoni in 4/62 (6.4%) donors and other parasites in 8/62 (12.9%). Five (5.9%) of the subjects presented overt seroconversion for HIV-1/2, 43/84 (51.2%) had negative results on the last visit, while 36/84 (42.9%) remained WB indeterminate. Although some conditions could be found associated with the HIV-1/2 indeterminate WB results and many donors had past of risky behavior, the significance of the majority of the results remains to be determined.