Seroprevalence of anti-rubella igm antibody among pregnant and child bearing women in diyala province

ABSTRACT

Rubella infections acquired postnatally are usually mild, but maternal infection during pregnancy is associated with considerable risk of intrauterine fetal infection with multi-system damage.Detection of anti-rubella IgM specific antibodies among pregnant and childbearing women in Baquba city and to explore the effects of certain demographic factors. The present study was conducted in Baquba-Diyala province during the period from April/2007 to September/2008. Ninety pregnant women were chosen from those attending the primary health care centers in Baquba. They include 30 [33.3%] pregnant women who had previous abortions with a mean age 27.2 +/- 5.3 years, and 60 [66, 7%] pregnant women without previous abortion with mean age 23.7+/- 5.1 years. Additionally, 94 non-pregnant childbearing women were enrolled as a control group. Of those, 37[39.4%] had previous abortions with mean age 33.5 +/- 7.8 years, and 57 [60.6%] without abortion, the mean age was 30.7+/-7.8 years. Certain demographic factors were collected by personal interview. Anti-rubella IgM specific antibody was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay [ELISA]. Data were statistically analyzed using SPSS computer assisted processing. P value of < 0.05 was considered significant. The results revealed that 3[5%] of pregnant women without previous abortion and 8[26.7%] of pregnant women who had previous abortions were seropositive for anti-rubella IgM antibody. The difference between the two groups was statistically significant [p= 0.003].Whereas, the IgM seropositivity was insignificantly higher in childbearing women without previous abortion compared to childbearing women who had previous abortions [4.6% vs 16.2%], [p=0.33]. Furthermore, the IgM seropositivity among childbearing women without previous abortion was significantly higher compared to pregnant women without previous abortion [24.6% vs 5%], [p=0.003].The presence of life births, time of gestation, and the levels of education significantly affect the seropositivity rate of IgM. Prenatal screening for anti-rubella IgM antibody is an important tool to identify active infection and to provide obstetric management to avoid the risk of congenital rubella syndrome