Top

Published in:

Open Access 01-12-2020 | Hepatitis B | Research article

Prevalence and associated factors of Treponema pallidum infection in a rural area of southwestern China

Authors: Ying Shi, Ya Yang, Yingjian Wang, Dongjian Yang, Yu Yang, Shurong Dong, Chunlin Li, Yue Chen, Qingwu Jiang, Yibiao Zhou

Published in: BMC Public Health | Issue 1/2020

Abstract

Background

Epidemiological data on Treponema pallidum infection are scarce from the southwestern region of China. The purpose of this study was to determine the distribution and determinants of T. pallidum infection in the region.

Methods

A community-based cross-sectional study of 2608 participants aged ≥14 years was conducted in a rural area of southwestern China in 2014–15. A pretested questionnaire was used to collect sociodemographic characteristics and other factors associated with T. pallidum infection. The diagnoses of T. pallidum, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections were determined by commercial test kits. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine the correlates for T. pallidum infection, and adjusted odds ratios (aORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.

Results

The prevalence of T. pallidum infection was 1.2% (95% CI 0.8 to 1.7%). Risk factors varied by gender. In the male group, T. pallidum infection was significantly associated with ever injection drug use (aOR = 9.42, 95% CI 2.47 to 35.87) and HCV infection (aOR = 13.28, 95% CI 3.20 to 51.70). In the female group, correlates for T. pallidum infection included spouse having syphilis (aOR = 126.66, 95% CI 7.58 to 2122.94), ever having blood transfusion (aOR = 10.51, 95% CI 1.58 to 41.21) and HBV infection (aOR = 4.19, 95% CI 1.35 to 10.93).

Conclusions

The prevalence of T. pallidum infection was high in the rural area of southwestern China. Correlates for T. pallidum infection varied with sex specific. Intervention should be developed for the prevention and control of T. pallidum infection.

Available only for authorised users

Peeling RW, Mabey D, Kamb ML, et al. Syphilis. Nat Rev Dis Primers. 2017;3:17073. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrdp.2017.73.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Bureau HC. Notice of the ministry of health on the issuance of the plan for the prevention and control of syphilis in China (2010-2020): The national health commission of the People’s Republic of China; 2010. http://www.nhc.gov.cn/wjw/gfxwj/201304/bb67c7a0e7c140d7b5ad25ca5106b659.shtml.

Galindo J, Mier JF, Miranda CA, et al. Neurosyphilis: an Age-old Problem that is Still Relevant Today. Rev Colomb Psiquiatr. 2017;46 Suppl 1:69–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rcp.2017.05.002.CrossRefPubMed

Hutchinson CM, Hook ER. Syphilis in adults. Med Clin North Am. 1990;74(6):1389–416.CrossRef

The L. Congenital syphilis in the USA. Lancet. 2018;392(10154):1168. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(18)32360-2.CrossRef

Chen ZQ, Zhang GC, Gong XD, et al. Syphilis in China: results of a national surveillance programme. Lancet. 2007;369(9556):132–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(07)60074-9.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Tucker JD, Chen XS, Peeling RW. Syphilis and social upheaval in China [J]. N Engl J Med. 2010;362(18):1658–61. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMp0911149.CrossRefPubMed

Dai S, Shen Z, Zha Z, et al. Seroprevalence of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis C virus in the general population of the Liangshan prefecture, Sichuan Province, China. J Med Virol. 2012;84(1):1–5. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.22214.CrossRefPubMed

Qin S, Li AS, Ma MJ, et al. Unprotected sex with casual partners: a neglected source of HIV transmission among members of the Yi minority in southwestern China. Biomed Environ Sci. 2014;27(10):824–31. https://doi.org/10.3967/bes2014.120.CrossRefPubMed

10.

Tucker JD, Bu J, Brown LB, et al. Accelerating worldwide syphilis screening through rapid testing: a systematic review. Lancet Infect Dis. 2010;10(6):381–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(10)70092-X.CrossRefPubMed

11.

Koek AG, Bruisten SM, Dierdorp M, et al. Specific and sensitive diagnosis of syphilis using a real-time PCR for Treponema pallidum. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2006;12(12):1233–6. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-0691.2006.01566.x.CrossRefPubMed

12.

Gayet-Ageron A, Ninet B, Toutous-Trellu L, et al. Assessment of a real-time PCR test to diagnose syphilis from diverse biological samples. Sex Transm Infect. 2009;85(4):264. https://doi.org/10.1136/sti.2008.034314.CrossRefPubMed

13.

Heymans R, van der Helm JJ, de Vries HJC, et al. Clinical Value of <em>Treponema pallidum</em> Real-Time PCR for Diagnosis of Syphilis. J Clin Microbiol. 2010;48(2):497. https://doi.org/10.1128/JCM.00720-09..CrossRefPubMed

14.

Yun Z, Lindh G, Weiland O, et al. Detection of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA by PCR related to HCV antibodies in serum and liver histology in swedish blood donors. J Med Virol. 1993;39(1):57–61. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.1890390111.CrossRefPubMed

15.

Zhou Y, Zhao M, Zhou C, et al. Sex differences in drug addiction and response to exercise intervention: from human to animal studies. Front Neuroendocrinol. 2016;40:24–41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yfrne.2015.07.001.CrossRefPubMed

16.

Choi SYP, Cheung YW, Jiang ZQ. Ethnicity and risk factors in needle sharing among intravenous drug users in Sichuan Province, China. AIDS Care. 2007;19(1):1–8. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540120600900496.CrossRefPubMed

17.

Zhou C, Rou K, Dong WM, et al. High prevalence of HIV and syphilis and associated factors among low-fee female sex workers in mainland China: a cross-sectional study. BMC Infect Dis. 2014;14:225. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2334-14-225.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

18.

Pan X, Jiang J, He H, et al. Survey of prevalence of HIV infection, syphilis and HCV infection and related risk behaviors among club drug users in Zhejiang, 2011. Zhonghua Liu Xing Bing Xue Za Zhi. 2015;36(9):934–40.PubMed

19.

Wang BX, Zhang L, Wang YJ, et al. Epidemiology of syphilis infection among drug users at methadone maintenance treatment clinics in China: systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J STD AIDS. 2014;25(8):550–8. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956462413515444.CrossRefPubMed

20.

Liu D, Wang Z, Chu T, et al. Gender difference in the characteristics of and high-risk behaviours among non-injecting heterosexual methamphetamine users in Qingdao, Shandong Province, China. BMC Public Health. 2013;13:30. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-13-30.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

21.

Mutagoma M, Nyirazinyoye L, Sebuhoro D, et al. Syphilis and HIV prevalence and associated factors to their co-infection, hepatitis B and hepatitis C viruses prevalence among female sex workers in Rwanda. BMC Infect Dis. 2017;17(1):525. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-017-2625-0.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

22.

Hu QH, Xu JJ, Zou HC, et al. Risk factors associated with prevalent and incident syphilis among an HIV-infected cohort in Northeast China. BMC Infect Dis. 2014;14:658. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-014-0658-1.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

23.

Li D, Yang X, Zhang Z, et al. Incidence of co-infections of HIV, herpes simplex virus type 2 and syphilis in a large cohort of men who have sex with men in Beijing, China. PLoS One. 2016;11(1):e147422. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0147422.CrossRef

24.

Goens JL, Janniger CK, De Wolf K. Dermatologic and systemic manifestations of syphilis [J]. Am Fam Physician. 1994;50(5):1013–20.PubMed

25.

Shrestha ACGPTB. Co-infection rate of HIV, HBV and Syphilis among HCV seropositive identified blood donors in Kathmandu, Nepal. Infect Ecol Epidemiol. 2012. https://doi.org/10.3402/iee.v2i0.14835.

26.

Ruan YH, Hong KX, Liu SZ, et al. Community-based survey of HCV and HIV coinfection in injection drug abusers in Sichuan Province of China. World J Gastroenterol. 2004;10(11):1589–93.CrossRef

27.

Chen Y, Shen Z, Morano JP, et al. Bridging the epidemic: a comprehensive analysis of prevalence and correlates of HIV, hepatitis C, and syphilis, and infection among female sex workers in Guangxi Province, China. PLoS One. 2015;10(2):e115311. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0115311.CrossRef

28.

Zhang X, Jia M, Chen M, et al. Prevalence and the associated risk factors of HIV, STIs and HBV among men who have sex with men in Kunming, China. Int J STD AIDS. 2017;28(11):1115–23. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956462416688818.CrossRefPubMed

29.

Scherbaum N, Baune BT, Mikolajczyk R, et al. Prevalence and risk factors of syphilis infection among drug addicts. BMC Infect Dis. 2005;5:33. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2334-5-33.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

30.

Tang W, Huang S, Chen L, et al. Late Neurosyphilis and tertiary syphilis in Guangdong Province, China: results from a cross-sectional study. Sci Rep. 2017;7:45339. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep45339.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

31.

Hook ER. Syphilis. Lancet. 2017;389(10078):1550–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)32411-4.CrossRefPubMed

32.

Campos-Outcalt D, Hurwitz S. Female-to-female transmission of syphilis: a case report. Sex Transm Dis. 2002;29(2):119–20.CrossRef

33.

Chen Y, Tang Z, Tang S, et al. Decreasing HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis C infection after a decade of harm reduction implementation among drug users in southwestern areas of China. J Stud Alcohol Drugs. 2018;79(2):248–57.CrossRef

34.

Sun Y, Guo W, Li G, et al. Increased synthetic drug abuse and trends in HIV and syphilis prevalence among female drug users from 2010-2014 from Beijing, China. Int J STD AIDS. 2018;29(1):30–7. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956462417715174.CrossRefPubMed

35.

Liao M, Kang D, Tao X, et al. Syndemics of syphilis, HCV infection, and methamphetamine use along the east coast of China. BMC Public Health. 2014;14:172. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-14-172.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

36.

Ding Y, He N, Zhu W, et al. Sexual risk behaviors among club drug users in Shanghai, China: prevalence and correlates. AIDS Behav. 2013;17(7):2439–49. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-012-0380-1.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

37.

Yang Y, Luan RS, Liu P, et al. Casual sex and concurrent sexual partnerships among young people from an Yi community with a high prevalence of HIV in China. Asian J Androl. 2012;14(5):758–65. https://doi.org/10.1038/aja.2012.25.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

38.

Draogo C M R O, Draogo A O E, Kabore R A J, et al. Analysis of blood transfusion requirements during the gravido-puerperal period in a hospital in Ouagadougou, 2012 [C].

39.

Friedman BA, Burns TL, Schork MA. An analysis of blood transfusion of surgical patients by sex: a quest for the transfusion trigger. Transfusion. 1980;20(2):179–88. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1537-2995.1980.20280169958.x.CrossRefPubMed

40.

Xiao Y, Li SL, Lin HL, et al. Factors associated with syphilis infection: a comprehensive analysis based on a case-control study. Epidemiol Infect. 2016;144(6):1165–74. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0950268815002344.CrossRefPubMed

41.

Adjei AA, Armah HB, Gbagbo F, et al. Correlates of HIV, HBV, HCV and syphilis infections among prison inmates and officers in Ghana: a national multicenter study. BMC Infect Dis. 2008;8(1):33. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2334-8-33.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

42.

Yang Y, Zhou YB, Cheng WT, et al. A survey of HIV, HBV and HCV infections in children aged 1–13 years in Yi ethnic area, Sichuan province. Zhonghua Liu Xing Bing Xue Za Zhi. 2017;38(9):1165–8. https://doi.org/10.3760/cma.j.issn.0254-6450.2017.09.004.CrossRefPubMed

43.

Wijesooriya NS, Rochat RW, Kamb ML, et al. Global burden of maternal and congenital syphilis in 2008 and 2012: a health systems modelling study. Lancet Glob Health. 2016;4(8):e525–33. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2214-109X(16)30135-8.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

44.

Tucker JD, Chen XS, Peeling RW. Syphilis and social upheaval in China. N Engl J Med. 2010;362(18):1658–61. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMp0911149.CrossRefPubMed

45.

Yeganeh N, Watts HD, Camarca M, et al. Syphilis in HIV-infected mothers and infants: results from the NICHD/HPTN 040 study. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 2015;34(3):e52–7. https://doi.org/10.1097/INF.0000000000000578.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

46.

Garnett GP, Brunham RC. Magic bullets need accurate guns--syphilis eradication, elimination, and control. Microbes Infect. 1999;1(5):395–404.CrossRef

Title: Prevalence and associated factors of Treponema pallidum infection in a rural area of southwestern China
Authors: Ying Shi
Ya Yang
Yingjian Wang
Dongjian Yang
Yu Yang
Shurong Dong
Chunlin Li
Yue Chen
Qingwu Jiang
Yibiao Zhou
Publication date: 01-12-2020
Publisher: BioMed Central
Keywords: Hepatitis B
Syphilis
Human Immunodeficiency Virus
Hepatitis C
Published in: BMC Public Health / Issue 1/2020
Electronic ISSN: 1471-2458
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-08952-7

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Prevalence and associated factors of Treponema pallidum infection in a rural area of southwestern China

Abstract

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 1/2020

“Is there anything good about a water advisory?”: an exploration of the consequences of drinking water advisories in an indigenous community

The association between protection motivation and hepatitis b vaccination intention among migrant workers in Tianjin, China: a cross-sectional study

Demographic, behavioral, and cardiovascular disease risk factors in the Saudi population: results from the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology study (PURE-Saudi)

Magnitude of problematic anger and its predictors in the Millennium Cohort

Association of T. gondii infection with suicide: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Changes in overweight/obesity and central obesity status from preadolescence to adolescence: a longitudinal study among schoolchildren in Japan