Maternal and congenital syphilis in Karnataka, India
Archana, B.R.; Prasad, S.R.; Beena, P.M.; Okade, R.; Sheela, S.R.; Beeregowda, Y.C.
Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health 45(2): 430-434
2014
ISSN/ISBN: 0125-1562 PMID: 24968685 Document Number: 675154
Screening women for syphilis during pregnancy and providing proper treatment are the cornerstones of congenital syphilis prevention. During 2008-2011, 6,221 pregnant women were screened for syphilis using the Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) and Treponema Pallidum Hemagglutination (TPHA) tests at R.L. Jalappa Hospital, Kolar, Karnataka, India. The seroprevalence of syphilis during pregnancy ranged from 0.57% to 0.78% during the study. Of the 35 women with a positive test, 26 (74.28%) were detected at the time of labor and 9 (25.71%) were detected during antenatal care. None of the women detected at the time of labor received penicillin therapy for syphilis. Adverse fetal outcomes due to untreated syphilis during pregnancy were seen in many of the cases. During the study 26 infants (3.69/1,000) were diagnosed with congenital syphilis. Our findings show detection and treatment of syphilis during pregnancy needs to be strengthened in the study area to reduce the incidence of congenital syphilis.