Prevalence of Transfusion-transmitted Virus (TTV) Infection and its Association with Renal Post-transplantation Complications in Iran

Background: Transfusion-transmitted virus (TTV) is a single-stranded DNA virus. Renal transplant patients have a higher risk of TTV infection. Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of TTV and its correlation with post-renal transplantation complications in a population of Iranian patients. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed on 120 renal transplant recipients. TTV infection in the peripheral blood samples was detected by semi-nested polymerase chain reaction (semi-nested PCR). Then, the relationship between TTV and renal post-transplant complications was examined. Results: 34.2% renal transplant recipients were positive for TTV. There was a significant correlation between the presence of TTV and diabetes, acute transplant rejection, and urinary tract infection. We did not find any direct correlation between the presence of TTV infection and hypertension, hyperlipidemia, respiratory tract infection, and cytomegalovirus infection. Conclusion: We found an increased rate of TTV infection in renal transplant recipients associated with post-transplantation complications. TTV may be an important risk factor for some post-renal transplantation complications.