Risk factors for herpes simplex virus type 2 infection among female commercial sex workers in Mexico City.

ABSTRACT

PIP: The authors investigated the relationship between herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) infection and socioeconomic and demographic characteristics, sexual behavior, and history of STDs among female prostitutes in Mexico City. During 1993, 757 female prostitutes aged 18-76 years, of mean age 28.5 years, from a random selection of prostitution sites provided blood samples and answered a standardized questionnaire. The presence of HSV-2 antibodies was identified through Western blot assay, using type-specific recombinant glycoprotein gG2. Overall seroprevalences for the study population were 65.1%, 0.6%, 3%, and 6.4% for HSV-2, HIV, hepatitis B virus, and syphilis, respectively. There was no significant correlation between HIV and HSV-2 serological results, although all 5 HIV-seropositive women were HSV-2 seropositive. In a multivariate analysis, the presence of HSV-2 antibodies was correlated with relatively higher age and longer time working as prostitutes, low education, prostitution at a street site, and positive serology for syphilis.