Abstract
This study estimated the prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis infection during pregnancy in a sample of women up to 29 years of age in the city of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil, and investigated socio-demographic risk factors such as maternal age, marital status, maternal schooling, and family income. C. trachomatis infection was diagnosed with PCR using BD ProbeTecTM CT/GC Amplified DNA Assay. Socio-demographic, behavioral, and reproductive data were collected using structured questionnaires. All collections were performed by previously trained medical students. The study included a stratified probabilistic sample from four maternity hospitals in the city. The sample included 562 pregnant women, and prevalence of C. trachomatis infection was 12.3% (95%CI: 9.6-15.0). No significant association was identified between C. trachomatis infection and any of the target variables, including obstetric outcomes such as history of preterm delivery. Our findings in terms of low treatment adherence, only 43% of the women and 9.7% of partners, associated with high C. trachomatis prevalence, reinforce the need to implement routine screening for C. trachomatis during prenatal care. The attempt to diagnose and treat this infection after delivery, as in this study, limits the possibility of success.
Highlights
Chlamydia trachomatis is the most prevalent bacterial sexually transmitted infection (STI) and is a common cause of urethritis and cervicitis, leaving such sequelae as pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, and tubal factor infertility 1
This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of genital C. trachomatis in pregnant women at the time of their admission for childbirth at the participating study hospitals, as well as to study socio-demographic risk factors for this infection
Our result is twice the prevalence of 6.9% (95%CI: 3.6-10.2) reported by the national study when the sample was limited to Southern Brazil, where our sample was recruited
Summary
Chlamydia trachomatis is the most prevalent bacterial sexually transmitted infection (STI) and is a common cause of urethritis and cervicitis, leaving such sequelae as pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, and tubal factor infertility 1. In Brazil, studies with different populations and methodologies have reported high prevalence of C. trachomatis infection. Research in a prenatal clinic with 122 pregnant women in São Paulo found C. trachomatis prevalence of 9% 2. A study of adolescents with high-risk sexual behaviors attending the Family Health Program in Vitória (Espírito Santo State) reported C. trachomatis prevalence of 8.9% 3. A study of pregnant women in the United States (N = 2,127) found C. trachomatis prevalence of 4.7%, suggesting increased risk in women who were young, single, black, smokers, and infected with N. gonorrhoeae, with young age being the main predictor 5
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