Familial Clusters of HTLV-1-Associated Myelopathy/Tropical Spastic Paraparesis

OBJECTIVE: HTLV-1 proviral loads (PVLs) and some genetic factors are reported to be associated with the development of HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP). However, there are very few reports on HAM/TSP having family history. We aimed to define the clinical features and laboratory indications associated with HAM/TSP having family history. METHODS: Records of 784 HAM/TSP patients who were hospitalized in Kagoshima University Hospital and related hospitals from 1987 to 2012 were reviewed. Using an unmatched case-control design, 40 patients of HAM/TSP having family history (f-HAM/TSP) were compared with 124 patients suffering from sporadic HAM/TSP, who were admitted in series over the last 10 years for associated clinical features. RESULTS: Of the 784 patients, 40 (5.1%) were f-HAM/TSP cases. Compared with sporadic cases, the age of onset was earlier (41.3 vs. 51.6 years, p<0.001), motor disability grades were lower (4.0 vs. 4.9, p = 0.043) despite longer duration of illness (14.3 vs. 10.2 years, p = 0.026), time elapsed between onset and wheelchair use in daily life was longer (18.3 vs. 10.0 years, p = 0.025), cases with rapid disease progression were fewer (10.0% vs. 28.2%, p = 0.019), and protein levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were significantly lower in f-HAM/TSP cases (29.9 vs. 42.5 mg, p<0.001). There was no difference in HTLV-1 PVLs, anti-HTLV-1 antibody titers in serum and CSF, or cell number and neopterin levels in CSF. Furthermore, HTLV-1 PVLs were lower in cases with rapid disease progression than in those with slow progression in both f-HAM/TSP and sporadic cases. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that HAM/TSP aggregates in the family, with a younger age of onset and a slow rate of progression in f-HAM/TSP cases compared with sporadic cases. These data also suggested that factors other than HTLV-1 PVLs contribute to the disease course of HAM/TSP.