Syphilis in pregnancy

The impact of antenatal syphilis point of care testing on pregnancy outcomes: A systematic review

Background

Mother-to-child transmission of syphilis remains a leading cause of neonatal death and stillbirth, disproportionally affecting women in low-resource settings where syphilis prevalence rates are high and testing rates low. Recently developed syphilis point-of-care tests (POCTs) are promising alternatives to conventional laboratory screening in low-resource settings as they do not require a laboratory setting, intensive technical training and yield results in 10–15 minutes thereby enabling both diagnosis and treatment in a single visit. Aim of this review was to provide clarity on the benefits of different POCTs and assess whether the implementation of syphilis POCTs is associated with decreased numbers of syphilis-related adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Methods

Following the PRISMA guidelines, three electronic databases (PubMed, Medline (Ovid), Cochrane) were systematically searched for intervention studies and cost-effectiveness analyses investigating the association between antenatal syphilis POCT and pregnancy outcomes such as congenital syphilis, low birth weight, prematurity, miscarriage, stillbirth as well as perinatal, fetal or infant death.

Results

Nine out of 278 initially identified articles were included, consisting of two clinical studies and seven modelling studies. Studies compared the effect on pregnancy outcomes of treponemal POCT, non-treponemal POCT and dual POCT to laboratory screening and no screening program. Based on the clinical studies, significantly higher testing and treatment rates, as well as a significant reduction (93%) in adverse pregnancy outcomes was reported for treponemal POCT compared to laboratory screening. Compared to no screening and laboratory screening, modelling studies assumed higher treatment rates for POCT and predicted the most prevented adverse pregnancy outcomes for treponemal POCT, followed by a dual treponemal and non-treponemal POCT strategy.

Conclusion

Implementation of treponemal POCT in low-resource settings increases syphilis testing and treatment rates and prevents the most syphilis-related adverse pregnancy outcomes compared to no screening, laboratory screening, non-treponemal POCT and dual POCT. Regarding the benefits of dual POCT, more research is needed. Overall, this review provides evidence on the contribution of treponemal POCT to healthier pregnancies and contributes greater clarity on the impact of diverse diagnostic methods available for the detection of syphilis.

Identificación de acciones de salud en el Programa de Control de Sífilis en gestantes, Cartagena de Indias, 2016

Fundamento. La Sífilis Congénita es una infección causada por la diseminación hematógena del Treponema pallidum de la gestante infectada al feto. Se conoce que la transmisión materna puede ocurrir en cualquier momento del embarazo, por lo que el control de la enfermedad en la gestante es vital en la atención prenatal. Objetivo. Identificar el cumplimiento de acciones de salud comprendidas en el Programa de Control de Sífilis en gestantes de la ciudad de Cartagena de Indias, primer semestre del 2016. Materiales y métodos: Estudio observacional descriptivo transversal. Se evaluaron 781 gestantes inscritas en control prenatal de la ciudad, a través de las instituciones prestadoras de servicios de salud (IPS) y empresas promotoras de salud (EPS). Resultados: Concluyeron la gestación 358 (45.8%) de las gestantes estudiadas. 25 (6.5%) del total, no se realizaron la VDRL intraparto. Durante el primer trimestre del embarazo, el 99.6% de las evaluadas resultaron VDRL no reactivas (NR). Mientras que en el segundo trimestre fueron evaluadas, el 67.5% y el 57,4%, respectivamente; resultando VDRL reactiva (R) una (0.1%) durante ambos semestres. Del segundo al tercer trimestre de la gestación no se incrementó el número de gestantes no evaluadas (98; 12,5%) y (63; 8, 1%), sin embargo, sí se incrementó (55; 19.8%) (269; 34.4%), respectivamente, el número de las gestantes que están a la espera del tiempo para realizar la prueba. No existió co-infección Sífilis/VIH/SIDA. Conclusiones. El control de la sífilis durante la atención prenatal fue deficiente dado por la alta tasa de no adherencia al cumplimiento de asistencia a la consulta por la gestante, como la no realización de la prueba acorde al tiempo establecido por parte del equipo de salud.

A favorable pregnancy outcome in women with secondary syphilis

A clinical case of secondary fresh syphilis in a pregnant woman at 36 weeks is presented. A ttention deserves infection of a woman in the second half of pregnancy, which was resolved by the birth of a healthy child.