Burden of Disease of Gonorrhoea in Latin America: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Abstract

Introduction Neisseria gonorrhoeae causes gonorrhoea, a globally neglected but increasing disease. This systematic review and meta-analysis reviewed the epidemiology and economic burden of gonorrhoea in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Methods We searched PubMed, EMBase, Cochrane Library, EconLIT, CINAHL, CRD, LILACS, Global Health, Global Dissertations and Theses, SciELO, Web of Science databases, countries’ ministries of health, and the IHME’s Global Burden of Disease databases. Studies published in the last 10 years (20 years for economic studies) were included if conducted in any LAC country, without language restrictions. The main outcome measures were incidence/prevalence, proportion of co-infections, case fatality rates, specific mortality/hospitalisation rates, direct/indirect costs, and impact of gonorrhoea on quality of life. To assess evidence quality, we used a checklist developed by the US National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute for observational studies and trial control arms, the Cochrane Effective Practice Organization of Care Group tool for randomised controlled trials, and the CICERO checklist for economic studies. Results We identified 1290 articles; 115 included epidemiological studies and one included an economic study. Ministry of health data from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Uruguay were identified. Gonorrhoea prevalence was 1.46% (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.00–2.00%) from 48 studies and 5.68% (95% CI 4.23–7.32%) from 58 studies for non-high-risk and high-risk populations, respectively. Cumulative incidence for the high-risk population was 2.05 cases per 100 persons/year. Few published studies were rated as “good” in the risk of bias assessments. Variations in the methodology of the sources and limited information found in the countries’ surveillance systems hinder the comparison of data. Conclusion The burden of gonorrhoea in LAC is not negligible. Our results provide public health and clinical decision support to assess potential interventions to prevent gonorrhoea. Trial Registration The protocol is registered on PROSPERO (CRD42021253342). The study was funded by GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals SA (GSK study identifier VEO-000025). Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40121-023-00814-0.

Neisseria gonorrhea in Ethiopia, prevalence among STI suspected patients and its antimicrobial susceptibility: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Similarly, a study in Latin America reported a pooled N. gonorrhea prevalence of 2.9% in young people ( Vallejo-Ortega et al, 2023 ). While another study found gonorrhea prevalence at 1.46% in Latin America and the Caribbean, rising to 5.68% in high-risk populations ( Bardach et al, 2023 ). In contrast, studies in China, sub-Saharan Africa, and South Africa reported N. gonorrhea prevalence rates of 6, 5.46, and 10.1%, respectively ( Su et al, 2015 ; Kularatne et al, 2018 ; Kassa et al, 2020 ).…”