TO KNOW ABOUT SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED INFECTION & REPRODUCTIVE TRACT INFECTION IN HIV INFECTED WOMEN

Volume : IV, Issue : I, January - 2015

Dr. Pooja Agarwal, Dr. R. N. Verma, Dr. Saral Bhatia

Objective

To know the prevalence of STI/RTI in HIV infected women irrespective of their complains and distribution of various

RTI/STIs in these women.

Material and methods

This study was carried out in consecutively enrolled all HIV infected women coming to the gynecology Outpatient department in New Civil

Hospital Surat, directly or referred from ART center irrespective of their complaints. An informed consent was taken from all subjects. All

cases were subjected to detailed gynecological examination and two types of swabs, i.e., a vaginal swab and a cervical swab were taken for

STD/RTIs evaluation. Blood samples were also taken for serology for detection of STI/RTIs. All the subjects were given treatment according

to NACO�s symptomatic approach for RTI/STIs.

Results

Mean age of these subjects was 35.47 years. Majority of the participants in the study group were in age group 31-40 years (44.44%). Most of

the subjects at enrollment (72.2%) were in WHO stage I while least were in stage IV (1.9%). The most common symptom reported was vaginal

discharge in 42 subjects (38.9%), followed by lower abdominal pain in 27 subjects (25%). Of all the patients, 76% were found to have STI/RTI

clinically. Prevalence of overall STI/RTI was similar in both symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects.

CONCLUSION

It is seen that the prevalence of RTIs in HIV infected women is high enough to warrant routine gynecologic evaluation and RTI screening in

these patients.