Screening for subclinical Leishmania infection in HIV-infected patients living in eastern Spain.

Background:We anticipated that patients with HIV infection living in endemic areas were at greater risk of infection which can reactivate due to immunosuppression; therefore, we analyzed the prevalence of latent Leishmania infantum infection in patients infected with HIV. Methods: A total of 179 patients with HIV infection were screened for the presence of anti-Leishmania antibodies using indirect immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT) (Leishmania-spot IF; bioMerieux, Marcy l’Etoile, France). All patients were followed up for at least 1 year. The primary end-point was to confirm the presence of Leishmania infection. Results: Significant titer of antibodies to Leishmania was detected in six (3%; 95% confidence interval: 0·5–5·5%) asymptomatic patients. Two of them had visceral leishmaniasis that was confirmed by parasite visualization in clinical samples, the presence of Leishmania promastigotes in Novy–MacNeal–Nicolle culture, polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods, and/or urinary antigen test. Amo...