Sero-prevalence of Hepatitis B virus surface antigen and associated factors among women of reproductive age in Bench Maji Zone, Southwest Ethiopia: Community based cross-sectional study

Background: Hepatitis B virus infection is one of the leading causes of liver diseases which occurs worldwide particularly in developing countries. It is often caused by prenatal transmission from mother to child or household transmission from a close contact during early childhood. It causes different complications like; jaundice, induces premature labor, and prematurity. Objective: The aim of this study was to estimate the Sero-prevalence of hepatitis B virus surface antigen and associated factors among women of reproductive age in Bench Maji Zone, South West Ethiopia. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from December 15th, 2016, to February 15th, 2017. Multistage sampling technique was applied to select study participants. Logistic regression analysis was applied and p-values < 0.05 was used to see the significant association between dependent and independent variables. Results: A total of 330 participants were included in this study yielding 98.8% response rate. The Sero-prevalence of hbsag among women of reproductive age was 28(8.5%). Having multiple sexual partners (AOR = 18.73, 95% CI = [3.65, 96.21) history of unprotected sex (AOR = 9.39, 95% CI = [1.64, 53.77) were found to be significantly associated with Sero-prevalence of HBV. Conclusions: The Sero-prevalence of HBV infection among women of reproductive age was highly endemic. Hence, behavioral education and communication programs focusing on reduction of risky sexual behaviors should be designed to reduce HBV infection

Seroprevalence of microbial organisms during routine infertility evaluation at University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin-City, Nigeria

Background: The association of genital microorganism with infertility has been documented but no consensus exists. Understanding their prevalence amongst infertile clients may assist in facilitating better screening protocols. The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence of microorganisms routinely screened among women undergoing infertility evaluation at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital. Methods: A three year (January 2015 to December 2017) retrospective survey of all patients evaluated for infertility at the assisted reproduction unit of the hospital was undertaken. Chlamydia trachomatis, Ureaplasma urealyticum, Mycoplasma hominis, cytomegalovirus (CMV), hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C (HCV) virus and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) were microorganisms serologically assayed at the unit. We analyzed data containing patients' demography and results of serological assay of these microorganisms. Results: There were 576 patients (288 couples) who completed their microbiological evaluation during the study period. The mean age (years) of female partners was 38.2±5.7, while the mean age of the male partners was 42.7±6.1. The frequency of CMV positive assay for infertile couples was 129 (22.4%); C. trachomatis 125 (21.7%); M. hominis 92 (15.9%) and U. urealyticum 76 (13.2%). Overall, more women (50.7%) were seropositive compared to men (26%). HIV was positive in 10 patients (1.73%) with 60% being women. HBV was seropositive in 8 (1.4%) (women 62.5% and men 37.5%) while HCV was positive in only 2 (0.3%) patient. Majority (over 80%) of couples were sero-discordant with 20% (2) concordance rate for HIV and 12.5% (1) for hepatitis B. Conclusion: Despite a relatively high seroprevalence rate of the studied microorganisms, the documented uncertainty on their association with infertility or its treatment limits justification for incorporation of routine screening of microbiological organisms into standard protocols for evaluation of infertile couples. A robust study on the impact of genital microorganism on specific infertility variables with comparison to fertile controls is recommended