Abstract
Background: Viruses of the Herpes viridae family infect 90% of the Earth’s population. Humans are the hosts of at least nine unique herpes viruses. Aim: This study is aimed at evaluating the seroprevalence of type specific herpes simplex virus infection and the associated risk factors in a cross-section of asymptomatic healthy women of childbearing age in Kogi state, Nigeria. Methodology: A total of 330 females of child bearing age (15 - 49 years) participated in this study. They were recruited from various local government areas of three Senatorial districts of Kogi state. Blood samples were collected from participants and analyzed for HSV-1 and HSV-2 antibodies (IgG) quantitatively with ELISA kit. Results: The overall prevalence of HSV was 76.7%. Data further show that majority (96.4%) of the population studied had HSV-1, while 77% had HSV-2 infections. Results also showed that the young adults indicated prevalence of 95.7% for HSV-1 and 74.7% for HSV-2, while in the middle aged, the prevalence were 98.6% for HSV-1, and 84.9% for HSV-2. 99.2% of the married women were positive for HSV-1, while 86.9% were positive for HSV-2. 94.5% of the unmarried women were positive for HSV-1, while 70.5% were positive for HSV-2. The risk of HVS-1 or VS-2 infections was not associated with age, age of first sexual exposure and number sex partners before marriage. Married women were at greater risk for HSV-1 (p = 0.03) and HSV-2 (p ≤ 0.001) infections compared to the unmarried women. Conclusion: The prevalence of the HSV-1 and HSV-2 infections was high among asymptomatic healthy women of childbearing age in Kogi state, Nigeria. Efforts should be made to increase the awareness of HSV infection among the child bearing populace.
Highlights
The epidemiology of herpes simplex is of substantial epidemiologic and public health interest
An infection commonly caused by human herpes simplex virus 2 (HSV-2) in Nigeria and in most regions of the world, has been described as a silent pandemic with different countries being at different stages of the epidemic [2] [3]
Multivariate logistic regression analysis further indicated that young adults did not indicate significantly greater risk for HSV-1 (p = 0.47) and HSV-2 (p = 0.08) seropositivity compared to the middle-aged adults
Summary
The epidemiology of herpes simplex is of substantial epidemiologic and public health interest. Antibodies to HSV-2 are rarely found before the age of onset of sexual activity, but HSV2 seroprevalence increases to 35% - 60% by age 60 [6] [7]. This prevalence has increased dramatically since the late 70’s and is highest among prostitutes (75%) and male homosexuals (83%) [6]. Aim: This study is aimed at evaluating the seroprevalence of type specific herpes simplex virus infection and the associated risk factors in a cross-section of asymptomatic healthy women of childbearing age in Kogi state, Nigeria. Methodology: A total of 330 females of child bearing age (15 - 49 years) participated in this study They were recruited from various local government areas of three Senatorial districts of Kogi state. Results showed that the young adults indicated prevalence of 95.7% for HSV-1 and 74.7% for HSV-2, while in the middle aged, the prevalence were 98.6% for HSV-1, and 84.9% for HSV-2. 99.2% of the married women were positive for HSV-1, while 86.9%
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