Trichomonas vaginalis in HIV/AIDS subjects in Nigeria

Abstract

Objective To determine the prevalence of Trichomonas vaginalis (T. vaginalis) in HIV/AIDS patients attending two different hospitals in southeast Nigeria. Methods We collected 970 urine samples from HIV/AIDS patients attending two different hospitals in southeast Nigeria. Samples were processed by microscopy and cultural methods. Results Out of the 970 screened, 355 (36.60%) were positive for T. vaginalis. Subjects with the least CD4 + count in the range of 40-140 cells/mL had the highest number of positive samples (180, 50.70%), while those in the range of 480-580 cells/mL had the least value (2, 0.56%). Those in the rural areas had a higher number of positive samples (155, 38.75%) than their urban counterparts (200, 35.09%) with respect to the total number examined in each group but this was not statistically significant ( P>0.05). Out of the 355 positive cases, the university undergraduate students’ group had the highest percentage incidence of 53.00% followed by the low-income group with 47.08%. Conclusions It can be concluded that the occurrence of T. vaginalis increases with decrease in the CD4 + counts in HIV/AIDS patients in Nigeria. Since T. vaginalis may be an important cofactor in promoting the spread of HIV and, in some circumstances, may have a major impact on the epidemic dynamics of HIV, there is a need to take measures to check the spread of this parasitic infection.