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Flaviviruses include virus species that are major public health threats worldwide. To determine the immunity landscape of these viruses, seroprevalence studies are often performed using IgG ELISA, which is a simple and rapid alternative to the virus neutralization test. In this review, we aim to describe the trends in flavivirus IgG ELISA-based serosurveys. A systematic literature review using six databases was performed to collate cohort and cross-sectional studies performed on the general population. A total of 204 studies were included in this review. The results show that most studies were performed on dengue virus (DENV), whereas Japanese Encephalitis Virus (JEV) was the least studied. For geographic distribution, serosurveys followed known disease prevalence. Temporally, the number of serosurveys increased after outbreaks and epidemics except for JEV, for which studies were performed to demonstrate the effectiveness of vaccination campaigns. Commercial kits were more commonly used than in-house assays for DENV, West Nile Virus (WNV), and Zika virus (ZIKV). Overall, most studies employed an indirect ELISA format, and the choice of antigens varied per virus. This review shows that flavivirus epidemiology is related to the regional and temporal distribution of serosurveys. It also highlights that endemicity, cross-reactivities, and kit availabilities affect assay choice in serosurveys.
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Schistosomiasis is a neglected tropical disease affecting 40 million women of childbearing age worldwide. Its global disease prevalence among pregnant women is still unknown. This meta-analysis determined the pooled prevalence of schistosomiasis among pregnant women globally. Additionally, this study also determined the pooled prevalence based on infection intensity based on eggs per gram. Observational studies on the prevalence of schistosomiasis among pregnant patients were obtained from Medline, Scopus, and CINAHL from January 2001 until August 2020. A review of titles and abstracts was done independently by six reviewers. The quality of the included studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale for case-control, cohort, and cross-sectional studies. A total of 27 studies were included in the meta-analysis and meta-regression. The pooled prevalence of S. haematobium was 13.44 (CI: 8.90-19.80) per 100 observations, while the pooled prevalence of S. mansoni was 12.18 (CI: 4.47-29.12) per 100 observations. The prevalence of S. japonicum infection in one study was 53.54 (CI: 43.23-63.62) per 100 observations. Our results showed a prevailing health problem of schistosomiasis during pregnancy in various countries worldwide. This strengthens the need to conduct more schistosomiasis research, prevention, and control programs in pregnant women.
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PROBLEM: Several biomarkers have been studied to predict spontaneous preterm birth, including salivary progesterone. However, due to limited studies, the utility of this biomarker remains controversial. This study synthesized the available literature and determined the role of salivary progesterone as a potential biomarker for preterm birth. METHOD OF STUDY: All studies reporting the levels of salivary progesterone among pregnant women with reported birth outcomes were obtained from Ovid Medline, Scopus, CINAHL, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials from inception to January 10, 2022. A review of titles and abstracts was done independently by three reviewers. The quality of the studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. Meta-analysis was performed in R v.4.1.3 using the "meta" package. RESULTS: Five studies involving 861 pregnant patients from Egypt, India, Iraq, and the US were included in this meta-analysis. The random-effects model showed that salivary progesterone level after the 28th week of gestation was significantly different between patients with term and preterm birth (standardized mean difference [SMD]: 1.99; 95% confidence interval [CI]: .44-3.54) with a high degree of heterogeneity (I2 = 96%, P < .001). Based on the results of this meta-analysis, women with term birth had higher level of salivary progesterone after the 28th week of gestation than those with preterm birth. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the study results suggest that low salivary progesterone level after the 28th week of gestation is significantly associated with preterm birth. This study also highlights the use of saliva samples for monitoring sex steroid hormones throughout pregnancy.
