Dear Editor,

In the September 2023 issue of the Oman Medical Journal, Al Sharqi et al,1 reported an interesting case of immature renal teratoma in an Omani male newborn. However, the report does not mention the HIV status of the mother and the child.

It is known that HIV-positive individuals, including infants, are more susceptible to developing tumors than those who are not infected by the virus.2 Rare cases of teratoma have been reported in HIV-infected neonates.3 Although HIV positivity is low in Oman, the annual trend for new cases is rising.4 Accessible data shows that pregnant Omani women with HIV positivity account for 0.1% (1:1000) with 0.03% of seropositive pregnancies (3:10 000). Of the seropositive cases, 78.6% were known HIV carriers and the remaining 21.4% were newly diagnosed cases.5

We believe this extremely rare case would have been of even more scientific value, had the authors also included the HIV situation of the mother and the neonate by estimating CD4 lymphocyte count and viral load as well as HIV p24 antigen/antibody testing.

References

1. 1. Al Sharqi A, Mouaffak S, Al Rahbi F, Bawain S, Fatema N, Al-Rahbi N, et al. Primary immature renal teratoma in a neonate. Oman Med J 2023 Sep;38(5):e558.
2. 2. Kest H, Brogly S, McSherry G, Dashefsky B, Oleske J, Seage GR III. Malignancy in perinatally human immunodeficiency virus-infected children in the United States. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2005 Mar;24(3):237-242.
3. 3. Mpayo LL, Nkya A, Mawalla S, Manji KP. Post-auricular teratoma in an HIV-exposed newborn. BMJ Case Rep 2023 Feb;16(2):e252977.
4. 4. Elgalib A, Shah S, Al-Habsi Z, Al-Fouri M, Lau R, Al-Rawahi B, et al. Recent increase in HIV cases in Oman. Sultan Qaboos Univ Med J 2023 Aug;23(3):285-287.
5. 5. Al Hasani NA, Al Dughaishi T, Balkhair AA. HIV and pregnancy: a retrospective descriptive cross-sectional study of prevalence, maternal, obstetrical, and neonatal outcome at a tertiary care hospital in Oman. Oman Med J 2021 Nov;36(6):e321.