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Virology research J 2017 Vol 1 Issue 2
July 26-27, 2017 | Vancouver, Canada
WORLD CONFERENCE ON STDs, STIs & HIV/AIDS
allied
academies
Are Sexually Transmitted Infections the neglected orphan in our response to HIV/AIDS, STI and TB
(HAST) in South Africa?
Geoffrey Setswe
1, 2
Sigida S
1
, Chauke T
1
, Ramaliba T
1
, Mohlabane N
1
and
Lukhele P
1
1
University of South Africa (UNISA), South Africa
2
University of Venda
Introduction:
Every daymore than 1million people are newly
infected with STIs that can lead to morbidity, mortality, and
an increased risk of HIV acquisition. STIs account for a high
proportion of incident HIV infections and are also responsible
for a high proportion of adverse pregnancy outcomes. The
monitoring of STI prevalence is crucial for the evaluation of
STI treatment programs, and can also provide an indirect
measure of change in sexual behaviour. There is currently
no national approach for monitoring the prevalence of STIs
except for HIV and HSV-2. This is despite the fact that STIs
accounted for approximately 14% of all new HIV infections
in South Africa in 2010 with an estimated 4 million people
receiving treatment for STI’s every year.
Design and Methods:
A purposive and targeted search
was used to obtain literature from all sources available
in the public domain and the grey literature. Information
was extracted using an abstraction tool. We conducted a
quantitative review of data on STIs.
Findings and Discussion:
There is a lack of recent data on the
extent of STI as the last national survey on STI in the South
African public health sector was conducted in 2003 (SANAC,
2014). Johnson et al (2005) said lack of consistency between
sentinel surveys precludes a rigorous analysis of trends in
STI prevalence. “The last national survey on the quality of
STI treatment in the South African public health sector was
conducted in 2003” (SANAC, 2014: 57). The proportion of
new HIV infections in adults that were attributable to curable
STIs reduced from 39% in 1990 to 14% in 2010, while the
proportion of new infections attributable to genital herpes
increased*.
Monitoring of syphilis was discontinued in 2011 - this limited
the possibility of tracking rapid changes in sexual behaviour
for which syphilis is an indicator.
The latest data available on HSV-2 was from the 2012
antenatal survey which found a prevalence of 55.8% among
pregnant women in four provinces (KZN, Gauteng, WC and
NC). This was the first time HSV-2 prevalence was measured
nationally and trend data is therefore not available.
Eventhough modelled estimates for females aged 15-49 in
2005 were 54.4%, there were no alarm bells raised for these
staggering statistics.
Conclusion and Recommendations:
There is a considerable
need for more research to more accurately map the
variations in STI rates, as well as the risk factors underpinning
STI spread. This work would benefit from more accurate
population-based STI incidence and prevalence data. There
is a need for more nationally representative STI prevalence
studies in South Africa and more periodic cross sectional
studies that can be used to monitor prevalence trends and
the success of STI treatment initiatives (Johnson et al, 2005:
291). To maximize HIV prevention efforts in South Africa,
public health officials should consider testing for other STIs
when they test for HIV. Prepare a National STI strategy to
ensure STIs are no longer neglected in our response.
Speaker Biography
Professor Geoff Setswe is a Deputy Executive Director in the HIV/AIDS, STI & TB
Programme. He holds a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) degree from the University
of Limpopo, and obtained a Masters of Public Health (MPH) from Temple University
in Philadelphia, USA (1998). His doctorate focused on behavioural interventions
for reducing HIV risk among employees. The study provides policy makers and
implementers with evidence of behavioural interventions that work to reduce HIV risk
among employees in various workplaces. He worked for the HSRC as Chief Research
Specialist and Research Director from 2006 to 2010. Prof. Setswe is an expert on
the social aspects of HIV and AIDS and on the development of research programs to
reduce HIV transmission and the impact of AIDS. He has been principal investigator on
more than 12 research projects in HIV/AIDS and public health in the past 8 years. His
research interests are in the behavioural and social aspects of HIV/AIDS/TB/STI, AIDS/
TB policy, epidemiology and general public health issues.
e:
gsetswe@hsrc.ac.za