Features of syphilis seropositive pregnant women raising alarms in Hungary, 2013-2016

Serological status for TORCH in women of childbearing age: a decade-long surveillance (2012-2022) in Italy

Introduction. Serological screening and seroprevalence data for TORCH infections represent a key instrument to estimate immunity and vaccination levels and exposure rates to prevent and treat TORCH congenital infections.Hypothesis. Serology allows us to identify women susceptible to primary infection.Aim. Assess the prevalence of women at risk of primary infections by TORCH pathogens in Palermo, Sicily, Italy, in the decade 2012-2022.Methodology. A retrospective study was performed to evaluate the serological status (IgG and/or IgM) of 2359 women of childbearing age (WCBA), ranging from 16 to 46 years, attending the AOUP 'P. Giaccone' University Hospital of Palermo.Results. The results showed an overall prevalence of anti-TORCH IgG of 90.5 % for herpesvirus (HSV), 81.2 % for rubella virus (RV), 72.1 % for cytomegalovirus (CMV), 20.9 % for Toxoplasma gondii (TOX) and 4.8 % for Treponema pallidum (TP). IgM positivity was 16.9 % for HSV2, 10.3 % for TOX, 4 % for CMV and, 2 % for RV. A recent/active infection by TP was confirmed in 28.3 % of the seropositive women. Our results indicate that only a small percentage of WCBA were subjected to a comprehensive TORCH serological screening, while most WCBA were only tested for a single pathogen. In addition, no significant differences were found in terms of the overall TORCH IgG seroprevalence among different age groups (P>0.05).Conclusion. Identifying WCBA at risk of exposure during pregnancy allows us to prevent and reduce possible congenital infections, providing detailed guidelines and instructions. The results of this study showed that in Italy the risk of acquiring a primary infection by a TORCH agent is still high, therefore effective prevention strategies, including serological screening, should be implemented.

A Comparative Study of the Epidemiology of Treponemal Infection in the Volta and Oti Regions of Ghana: A Five-Year Multisite Parallel Population-Based Analysis vis-à-vis the Sentinel Survey

Treponemal infections can be blood-borne with great public health consequences. This study is aimed at comparatively describing the five-year (2013-2017) regional epidemiology of treponemal infection using pregnant women in the sentinel survey and apparently healthy blood donors as a proxy for the general population at four sentinel sites in the Volta and Oti Regions of Ghana. We analyzed retrospective data from 17,744 prospective blood donors aged 18 to 58 years and 7,817 pregnant women in a sentinel survey with ages from 15 to 49 years at Hohoe, Ho, Tongu, and Krachi West sentinel sites in the Volta and Oti Regions. Laboratory data extracted include variables such as age, gender, date of blood donation, and Treponema pallidum chromatographic immunoassay results from the blood banks of the four study sites. The five-year treponemal infection rate among the pregnant women in the sentinel survey and prospective blood donors was 0.79% and 2.38%, respectively. Site-specific infection rate for population-based/sentinel survey was 4.6%/1.1%, 2.0%/0.5%, 1.3%/1.1, and 1.2%/0.3% for Hohoe, Ho, Krachi West, and Tongu, respectively. Significant gender disparity in Treponemal infection rate exists with a male preponderance. The regional infection rate in the sentinel survey is lower compared to the general population. Therefore, the use of pregnant women as a proxy for population estimates could underestimate the burden in the study jurisdiction.

Magnitude of syphilis sero-status and associated factors among pregnant women attending antenatal care in Jinka town public health facilities, Southern Ethiopia, 2020

INTRODUCTION

Syphilis is one of the leading causes of perinatal morbidity and mortality and is one of the most important public health problems. There was no study showing syphilis serostatus and its related factors among pregnant women in the current study area. This study was aimed to assess the magnitude of syphilis serostatus and associated factors among pregnant women attending antenatal care in Jinka town public health facilities.

METHOD

Institution based cross-sectional study design was conducted in Jinka town public health facilities, southern Ethiopia from the 1st July to the 1st September, 2020. A systematic sampling technique was used to select 629 study subjects. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire through face-to-face interviews and records were reviewed to check syphilis test results. Data were coded and entered by using Epi-data version 4.432 and analyzed using SPSS version 25. The binary logistic regression model was used to investigate factors associated with syphilis. A p-value of < 0.05 at multivariable analysis was considered statistically significant.

RESULT

In this study, syphilis sero-prevalence among pregnant women attending antenatal care clinics was 4.8% (95% CI: 3.12, 6.48). Rural residence [AOR: 2.873; 95%CI (1.171, 7.050)], alcohol use [AOR: 3.340; 95% CI (1.354, 8.241)] and having multiple sexual partner [AOR: 5.012; 95% CI (1.929, 13.020)] were statistically significantly associated with syphilis.

CONCLUSION

Sero-prevalence of syphilis was high. Being a rural residence, having multiple sexual partners, alcohol use were factors associated with syphilis. Therefore, substantial efforts have to be made to provide regular health education for pregnant women at the antenatal clinic on the avoidance of risky behaviors and the risk of syphilis on their pregnancy.