The Prevalence of Trichomoniasis in High-Risk Behavior Women Attending the Clinics of Tehran Province Penitentiaries
Year: 2010
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Background: Trichomoniasis is a worldwide sexually trans-mitted disease (STD), and is associated with important public health problems, including enhancement of HIV transmission. The prevalence of the parasite, Trichomonas vaginalis, de-pends on host factors such as age, sexual activity, number of sexual partners and sexual behavior. The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of trichomoniasis in high-risk be-havior women, such as drug addicts and those who had multi-ple sexual partners, attending Gynecology Clinics in peniten-tiaries of Tehran province to help gynecologists with the diag-nosis and treatment of the disease. Methods: Samples of posterior vaginal fornix discharges and urines of 450 women attending Gynecology Clinics of three pris-ons in Tehran province were collected. All samples were examined by direct smear and cultured in TYI-S-33 culture media. Results: 10.2 % of subjects were positive for trichomoniasis. 82.7 % of infected patients were symptomatic individuals who complained of vaginal discharge and itching and/or burning sensation. Most of the infected women in the high risk behav-ior group were drug users (54.3%). Physical examination showed that 50 % of T. vaginalis positive subjects had a normal appearance of vagina and cervix. The peak prevalence (32.8%) of the disease occurred in the age range of 31-40 years. Conclusion: T. vaginalis infection is commonly associated with other STDs, and is a marker of high-risk sexual behavior. Due to the side effects of the drugs used to treat the infection, it is suggested that the treatment be performed after definite diagnosis using a diagnostic method with a higher sensitivity.
Language: English
Subfield: Microbiology
Field: Immunology and Microbiology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2129948133