Syphilis and gonorrhoea among people with HIV during pandemic times: a report from Athens, Greece

Vasalou, Varvara; Paparizos, Vassilios; Daskalakis, Evangelos; Paparizou, Eleni; Kourkounti, Sofia; Stratigos, Alexander J.

doi:10.1136/sextrans-2021-055095

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 2 publications

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“…While the EU/EEA STI surveillance data for 2020 are under validation, initial information on trends can be gathered from national reports, surveys and peer-reviewed publications, including a series of articles hosted by the STI journal [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] (table 1). A reduction in the number of STI diagnoses coinciding with pandemic-related restrictions on social interactions was reported from many settings, although some reported stable or even increasing numbers.…”

Section: Did the Covid-19 Pandemic Have An Impact On Sti Notifications?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual transmission of infections across Europe: appraising the present, scoping the future

et al. 2022

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Objectives: Our journal partnered with the Europe section of the International Union against STI (IUSTI) at a workshop held at the 18th European AIDS Conference in London on 30 October 2021. The workshop reviewed epidemiological trends and discussed STI care provision within HIV services across Europe. Methods and Results: We started by highlighting trends in bacterial STIs reported to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control from countries in the European Union/European Economic Area. This showed that notifications of bacterial STIs reached an all-time high in 2019, but are expected to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020–2021. We then reviewed the evolving relationship between STIs and HIV and pointed out how antiretroviral treatment and pre-exposure prophylaxis remain highly effective against HIV transmission despite the rising incidence of STIs. Within emerging concepts in STIs, we appraised the benefits and risks of asymptomatic screening for chlamydia, and also considered the potential perils of routinely testing for agents that lack a defined role in disease. Finally, we discussed standards of STI care for people living with HIV, informed by a brief survey of IUSTI Europe country representatives and members of the Euroguidelines in Central and Eastern Europe network. Conclusions: The survey indicated substantial variability and identified key improvement targets: fighting barriers to effective service provision and access, increasing diagnostic capability and taking leadership in driving up the quality of care. We must not forget the STI-related needs of the many people who will be living with HIV for decades into the future.

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Section: Did the Covid-19 Pandemic Have An Impact On Sti Notifications?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual transmission of infections across Europe: appraising the present, scoping the future

et al. 2022

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The Resurgence of Treponema pallidum Infections and Reinfections during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Greece

Tsantes,

Toumasis,

Domouchtsidou

et al. 2024

IJERPH

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The beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic was marked by a sharp decline in syphilis infections in many countries worldwide, including Greece. However, a resurgence of positive cases started to appear in the second half of 2020. The aim of this study was to explore the impact of the pandemic on the incidence of new syphilis infections and reinfections and analyze the sociodemographic characteristics associated with recurrent episodes. We analyzed medical records from a 14-month period after the beginning of the pandemic and compared them with the respective period before the start of the pandemic. Our participants consisted mainly of men, with a median age of 43 years, homosexual orientation, and higher education. During COVID-19, more HIV patients presented for syphilis testing (38.0% vs. 34.6%, p = 0.025). Overall, we observed almost a two-fold increase in positive syphilis cases during COVID-19 (21.1% vs. 12.4%, p < 0.001), with new infections rising from 8.4% to 13.2% and reinfections from 4.0% to 7.9%. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic, among different parameters (such as age, gender, sexual orientation, HIV status, and educational level), was the only factor associated with higher positive syphilis rates (OR 1.47, 95% CI: 1.07–2.01, p = 0.003). Our results highlight the need to ensure enhanced prevention and undisrupted healthcare services, with a focus on future pandemics.

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Syphilis and gonorrhoea among people with HIV during pandemic times: a report from Athens, Greece

Cited by 2 publications

References 2 publications

Sexual transmission of infections across Europe: appraising the present, scoping the future

Sexual transmission of infections across Europe: appraising the present, scoping the future

The Resurgence of Treponema pallidum Infections and Reinfections during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Greece

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