International STD Research & Reviews

AIDS (acquired Immunodeficiency syndrome) is a fast spreading pandemic with global affection and has affected lives of multitudes in recent years. The purpose of this paper was to determine the effect of an AIDS education program on physical therapy students’ knowledge about AIDS, attitudes towards people with AIDS and willingness to treat AIDS patients. A sample of 50 physical therapy students’ aged 22 to 28 volunteered to participate in this study. All subjects were pretested and posttested together with an AIDS study questionnaire. The subject group demonstrated an improvement in knowledge about AIDS (56%) and positive attitudes towards AIDS patients (16%), although the students’ willingness to provide services for AIDS patients remained unchanged following the AIDS education program. Further study of other levels of physical therapists or physical therapy students, measurement of actual clinical behaviours and comparisons of different educational interventions are needed.

Introduction: The most effective means of reducing Mother-to-Child transmission of HIV is to provide suppressive HAART. Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) directly affects the achievement of Sustainable Development goals just. The unmet need for PMTCT services in Nigeria, particularly in Enugu state, is unacceptably high. This study aimed to assess factors associated with access barriers and determinants to PMTCT services in public health facilities in Enugu, Nigeria.

Materials and Methods: The study design was a facility-based analytical cross-sectional study. HIV positive nursing mothers who were accessing PMTCT services were studied. Questionnaire was used. Chi-square test and Binary logistic regression was done to for determinants of experience of any access barrier.  Level of significance was determined at a p-value of ≤ 0.05.

Results: A total of 2275 participants were reported on. A higher proportion of participants were in 30-34 years age group 124 (45.1%), attained secondary education 144(52.4%) and provided for by their husbands 174(63.3%) The major barriers identified were; long waiting time at the facility 184(66.9%), distance of facility 161(58.5%), PMTCT being far away from other units/departments 155(56.4%), Health workers talking to the clients with no respect 151(54.9%), Stigma and discrimination from friends/neighbours 163(59.3%) and from health workers 123(44.7%) as well as being too busy with household chores 130(47.3%). There were statistically significant association between experience of barriers with age in categories (χ2=11.741, p =0.008), religion (χ2=5.381, p =0.020), source of income (χ2= 8.817, p=0.032) and ethnicity (χ2=9.240, p=0.026).

Conclusion: Over ninety percent of respondents experienced a form of barrier. The major barriers include; long waiting time, distance to facility, location of PMTCT units, Health workers attitude, Stigma and discrimination from health workers as well as being too busy with household chores. There was no identified predictor of access barrier.

This study aimed to determine attitudes towards reproductive health among young university students who will be playing important role as future healthcare professionals. This was a cross-sectional descriptive study. The research population consisted of 1126 individuals and the research sample was 1096. The study data were collected by using two forms “Information Form” and Reproductive Health Scale (RHS). The students’ mean age was 21.11±1.91. Nearly of the students (78.6%) were females, 75.5% of the students had information about reproductive health, 59.4% of them had obtained information through the mass media, and the female students were much better informed than the male students. The RHS mean score was 139.66±23.58 and 60.5% of the students obtained a score above the mean. Being female increased the scores for the sub-dimensions of Partner Selection and Values in Developing Preventive Behaviors. The results of this study show that the attitudes of the young people studying at the College of Health towards reproductive health were generally positive, but that they were not adequately reflected in their behaviors. Conclusion and recommendation: Further research is needed to reveal why the knowledge and attitudes of the students did not lead to appropriate behaviors.

Aims: We evaluated different treatment regimens administered to patients infected with HIV-2 in Mali, and studied pol polymorphisms that may influence susceptibility to antiretrovirals.

Methodology: We collected 57 blood samples from HIV - 2 seropositive patients in health centers in Mali (Bamako, Segou and Sikasso), including 21 treated patients and 36 untreated patients. The confirmation of the serological status and the measurement of the viral load were carried out in Brussels. Genotypic analysis of protease, reverse transcriptase and integrase was then performed on specimens with detectable viral load. The search for ARV resistance mutations and polymorphism positions was performed in comparison with reference sequences.

Results: The most used treatment regimen was ZDV-3TC-LPV/ r.  Genotypic analysis of protease, reverse transcriptase and integrase was performed on 20 samples from patients with detectable viral load: 16 untreated patients and 4 treated patients. Seventy-five percent of the strains analyzed correspond to group A of HIV-2. In 2cas, mutations associated with resistance to the administered molecules were found. Three viral strains from untreated patients had NRTI or PI resistance mutations. In integrase, no mutation associated with resistance was observed.

Conclusion: The circulation of strains carrying resistance mutations to NRTIs and PIs has been observed in Mali.

Background: Syphilis is a multifaceted disease with serious implications for the pregnant women and the foetus. Treponema pallidum, the causative agent of syphilis has been a public health challenge for centuries. Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among pregnant women are wide spread in the developing countries, and constitute a major public health problem in sub-Saharan Africa. Information regarding the prevalence of syphilis in pregnant women is scanty from the north-west zone of Nigeria.

Aims: Evaluation of seroprevalence of Treponema pallidum infection among pregnant women attending a selected hospital at Northern Nigeria was carried out, with view to assess the socio-demographic data and predisposing factors of syphilis among the study population.

Methods: Exactly 200 pregnant women, who attended antenatal clinic of the selected hospital at Northern Nigeria, from July to September, 2015 were screened for syphilis using syphilis rapid immunochromatographic test for in-vitro diagnostic technique. Patients’ demographic data and predisposing factors of syphilis were assessed using a structured questionnaire.

Results: The result showed that 2.0% of the 200 pregnant women screened were positive. Based on age, individuals who were less than or equal 20 years had the highest prevalence of 4.1% followed by those who aged 21-30 with the prevalence of 1.1%. Family type and place of the study subjects were significantly associated with the disease (Fisher’s exact test = 0.014 and 0.008 respectively). Therefore associated risk factors were age, family type and place of residence. While, educational status, employment status, gestational age and blood transfusion were not significantly associated with syphilis in the study area. While seroprevalence of 4(5.7%) was recorded in polygamous individual; no positive case was recorded among those practicing monogamy. Urban dwellers were found to have a prevalence rate of 6.6% with no infection detected among the rural dwellers.

Conclusion: The overall prevalence of syphilis among the study population was 2.0%. The disease is more prevalent among middle aged, rural dwelling and polygamous pregnant women. Hence in a bid to control syphilis infection, both partners should be evaluated and treated. This study has further provided information on the prevalence of Treponema pallidum infection among pregnant women at Northern Nigeria.