Isolation of human T-lymphotropic virus type III from the tears of a patient with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

Human T-lymphotropic virus type III (HTLV-III) was isolated from the tears of 1 out of 7 patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) or the AIDS-related complex. The tears from 5 healthy individuals did not show HTLV-III. The recovery of HTLV-III from tears suggests that they may harbour free virus or contain virus-positive cells and is consistent with the recovery of HTLV-III from other body fluids. Although casual contact with such fluids has not been shown to cause AIDS, direct contact with the tears of AIDS patients, including contact during routine ophthalmologic procedures, should be minimised.