Abstract
Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is the most frequent AIDS-associated neoplasm, and often disseminates to visceral organs, including the lungs. An ante-mortem diagnosis of pulmonary KS is difficult. Recently, DNA sequences resembling a new human herpes virus (HHV-8), have been identified in various forms of KS. We hypothesized that these sequences are present in samples obtained by bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) in patients with pulmonary KS. Utilizing a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR), 7/12 BAL cell samples from HIV-infected patients with endobronchial KS were positive for HHV-8 DNA. In contrast, only 2/39 samples from HIV-infected patients without evidence of KS were positive (p = 0.007). Detection of HHV-8 in BAL cells of patients with pulmonary KS was highly specific (95%), with a sensitivity of 58% and a positive predictive value of 78%. In conclusion, HHV-8 is associated with pulmonary KS, and PCR amplification of HHV-8 in BAL cells provides a non-invasive method with a high positive predictive value.
| Translated title of the contribution | Human herpes virus-8 DNA in bronchoalveolar lavage samples from patients with AIDS-associated pulmonary Kaposi's sarcoma. |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Journal | Scandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases |
| Volume | 29 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Pages (from-to) | 13-16 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| ISSN | 0036-5548 |
| Publication status | Published - 1997 |
