Influence of Syphilis Infection on Abortions in Iraq

  • Hadeel Ali Mahamda Al-Iraqia University, College of Medicine, Iraq.
  • Ameen Abdulhasan Al Alwany University of Bagdad, College of Medicine, Iraq.
Keywords: Influence, Syphilis Infection, Abortion

Abstract

Introduction: Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease, that may be transferred from mothers to infants during pregnancy if it is left untreated.
Method: This study was conducted among 65 women who suffered from recurrent abortions in Iraq. Syphilis screening recombinant (IgM + IgG) level by ELISA, RADIM (Italy) and rapid plasma reagin (RPR) (positive and negative results) tests were used to analyse the data.
Results: A non-significant association was observed with age (p=0.989), and the number of healthy births (p=0.643). Non-significant differences were observed in comparisons between smoker and non-smoker percentages in the study group. The rapid test for syphilis confirmation was applied using Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) tests. There was a significant elevation in syphilis level (IgG + IgM) in the positive test (p=0.027). The number of abortions and births had a non-significant correlation (p=0.318 and 0.783 respectively). There was a non-significant weak correlation between syphilis level (IgG + IgM) and age. Syphilis level had a non-significant association with the number of abortions, births, and with duration of marriage. The abortion percentage distribution showed a high percentage in the first trimester (75%) in positive RPR patients and 70.7% in negative results of RPR test. The second-trimester cases were low in the positive and negative RPR results than the first-trimester cases.
Conclusion: The current study concluded that syphilis infection didn’t have a significant influence on abortion in women and had a non-significant influence on the number of abortions.

How to cite this article:
Mahamda HA, Alwany AAA. Influence of Syphilis Infection on Abortions in Iraq. J Commun Dis. 2022;54(4):41-45.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24321/0019.5138.2022101

References

Berman SM. Maternal syphilis pathophysiology and treatment. Bull World Health Organ.2004;82(6):433-8. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Ingall D, Sánchez PJ. Syphilis. In Remington JS, Klein JO, editors. Infectious diseases of the fetus and newborn infant. 5th ed. Philadelphia: WB Saunders; 200; 643-81.

Hawkes S, Matin N, Broutet N, Low N. Effectiveness of interventions to improve screening for syphilis in pregnancy a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet Infect Dis. 2011;11(9):684-91. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

American Academy of Pediatrics and American College of Obstetricians Gynecologists. Antepartum care. In Guidelines for Perinatal Care. USA; American Academy of Pediatrics; 2007;87-137.

Workowski KA, Berman SM. Sexually transmitted diseases treatment guidelines, 2010. MMWR Recomm Rep. 2010;59(RR-12):1-113. [Google Scholar]

Wendel Jr GD, Sheffield JS, Hollier LM, Hill JB, Ramsey PS, Sánchez PJ. Treatment of syphilis in pregnancy and prevention of congenital syphilis. Clin Infect Dis. 2002;35(Suppl 2):S2009. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Skarpaas T, Loe K. [The occurrence of positive serological syphilis reactions in pregnant women in Norway 1964-1978]. Tidsskr Nor Laegeforen. 1980;100:1840-3. Norwegian. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Sison CG, Ostrea Jr EM, Reyes MP, Salari V. The resurgence of congenital syphilis; a cocaine-related problem. J Pediatr. 1997;130:289-92. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Klass PE, Brown ER, Pelton SI. The incidence of prenatal syphilis at the Boston City Hospital: a comparison across four decades. Pediatrics. 1994;94:24-8. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Reyes MP, Hunt N, Ostrea Jr EM, George D. Maternal/ congenital syphilis in a large tertiary-care urban hospital. Clin Infect Dis. 1993;17:1041-6. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Campos-Outcalt D, Ryan K. Prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases in Mexican-American pregnant women by country of birth and length of time in the United States. Sex Transm Dis. 1995;22:78-82. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Bowell P, Mayne K, Puckett A, Entwistle C, Selkon J. Serological screening tests for syphilis in pregnancy results of a five year study (1983-87) in the Oxford region. J Clin Pathol. 1989;42:1281-4. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Subhi IM, Mahdi AR. Prevalence of syphilis disease throughout some expatriate workers in Iraq. Al-Esraa Univ Coll J Med Sci. 2022;2(1):e2-36. [Google Scholar]

Eihab AA, Mousa A, Adam DA, Bakri YM, Ra’ed A, Ali E. Prevalence of syphilis and human immunodeficiency virus in expatriates in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. Trop Biomed. 2016;33(4):613-8. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Makroo RN, Hegde V, Chowdhry M, Bhatia A, Rosamma NL. Seroprevalence of infectious markers & their trends in blood donors in a hospital based blood bank in North India. Indian J Med Res. 2015;142;317-22. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Hassan SH. Prevalence of syphilis in blood donors over one year in Karbala Governorate, Iraq. Indian J Public Health Res Dev. 2020;11(4):1544-8. [Google Scholar]

Korenromp EL, Rowley J, Alonso M, Mello MB, Wijesooriya NS, Mahiané SG, Ishikawa N, Le LV, Newman-Owiredu M, Nagelkerke N, Newman L, Kamb M, Broutet N, Taylor MM. Global burden of maternal and congenital syphilis and associated adverse birth outcomes-estimates for 2016 and progress since 2012. PloS One. 2019;14(2):e0211720. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

World Health Organization [Internet]. WHO guideline on syphilis screening and treatment for pregnant women; 2017 [cited 2017;9]. Available from: http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/259003/1/9789241550093-eng.pdf?ua=1

Hawkes SJ, Gomez GB, Broutet N. Early antenatal care: does it make a difference to outcomes of pregnancy associated with syphilis? A systematic review and meta-analysis. PloS One. 2013;8(2):e56713. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Sanchez MR. Sexually transmitted diseases. In Wolff K, Goldsmith LA, Katz SI, Gilchrest BA, Paller AS, Leffell DJ, editors. Fitzpatrick dermatology in general medicine. 7th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill. 2008;1967.

Trinh T, Leal AF, Mello MB, Taylor MM, Barrow R, Wi TE, Kamb ML. Syphilis management in pregnancy a review of guideline recommendations from countries around the world. Sex Reprod Health Matters. 2019;27(1):69-82. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Thornton C, Chaisson LH, Bleasdale SC. Characteristics of pregnant women with syphilis and factors associated with congenital syphilis at a Chicago hospital. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2022;3;9(5):of ac169. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Published
2022-12-31