TY - JOUR
T1 - Seroprevalence of maternal HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis in a major maternity hospital in North Kordofan, Sudan
AU - Elkheir, Sirelkhatim M.
AU - Babiker, Zahir O.E.
AU - Elamin, Sabah K.
AU - Yassin, Mohammed I.A.
AU - Awadalla, Khidir E.
AU - Bealy, Mohamed A.
AU - Agab Eldour, Ahmed A.
AU - Alloba, Fath E.
AU - Atabani, Sowsan F.
AU - Osman, Husam K.E.
AU - Babiker, Abdel G.
AU - Herieka, Elbushra A.M.
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The University of Kordofan provided funds to purchase commercial rapid test kits for the diagnosis of HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis. AGB was supported by the Medical Research Council (MRC_UU_12023/23).
Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2018.
PY - 2018/11/1
Y1 - 2018/11/1
N2 - Routine infectious diseases screening of Sudanese pregnant women has been patchy due to scarcity of healthcare resources and social stigma. We sought to determine the seroprevalence of HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis among pregnant women attending antenatal care (ANC) at El Obeid Maternity Hospital in western Sudan. We also explored the association between these infections and a set of socio-demographic and maternal variables. Unlinked anonymous testing for HIV-1/2 antibodies, hepatitis B surface antigen, and Treponema pallidum antibodies was performed on residual blood samples collected during routine ANC (August 2016–March 2017). Seroprevalence of HIV was 1.13% (5/444; 95% CI 0.37–2.61%), hepatitis B 2.93% (13/444; 95% CI 1.57–4.95%), and syphilis 7.43% (33/444; 95% CI 5.17–10.28%). On bivariate analysis, there were no statistically significant associations between hepatitis B, syphilis, or a composite outcome including any of the three infections and age, stage of pregnancy, gravidity, parity, previous mode of delivery, history of blood transfusion, or husband polygamy. Urgent action is needed to scale up routine maternal screening for HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis on an opt-out basis. Further research into the socio-demographic and behavioural determinants of these infections as well as their clinical outcomes is needed.
AB - Routine infectious diseases screening of Sudanese pregnant women has been patchy due to scarcity of healthcare resources and social stigma. We sought to determine the seroprevalence of HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis among pregnant women attending antenatal care (ANC) at El Obeid Maternity Hospital in western Sudan. We also explored the association between these infections and a set of socio-demographic and maternal variables. Unlinked anonymous testing for HIV-1/2 antibodies, hepatitis B surface antigen, and Treponema pallidum antibodies was performed on residual blood samples collected during routine ANC (August 2016–March 2017). Seroprevalence of HIV was 1.13% (5/444; 95% CI 0.37–2.61%), hepatitis B 2.93% (13/444; 95% CI 1.57–4.95%), and syphilis 7.43% (33/444; 95% CI 5.17–10.28%). On bivariate analysis, there were no statistically significant associations between hepatitis B, syphilis, or a composite outcome including any of the three infections and age, stage of pregnancy, gravidity, parity, previous mode of delivery, history of blood transfusion, or husband polygamy. Urgent action is needed to scale up routine maternal screening for HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis on an opt-out basis. Further research into the socio-demographic and behavioural determinants of these infections as well as their clinical outcomes is needed.
KW - HIV
KW - Sudan
KW - epidemiology
KW - hepatitis B
KW - pregnancy
KW - syphilis
KW - unlinked anonymous testing
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U2 - 10.1177/0956462418784687
DO - 10.1177/0956462418784687
M3 - Article
C2 - 30049254
AN - SCOPUS:85052524692
SN - 0956-4624
VL - 29
SP - 1330
EP - 1336
JO - International Journal of STD and AIDS
JF - International Journal of STD and AIDS
IS - 13
ER -