Herpes simplex virus seroprevalence and risk factors in 2 Canadian sexually transmitted disease clinics.
OBJECTIVE
The objectives of this study were to determine the seroprevalence and risk factors for herpes simplex virus (HSV) types 1 and 2 in patients attending 2 Canadian sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinics.


METHODS
Stored sera were tested for the presence of IgG class antibodies to HSV-1 and HSV-2 and results linked to that obtained from a risk behavior questionnaire.


RESULTS
Overall prevalences for HSV-1 and -2 were 56% and 19%, respectively. HSV-1 and -2 seropositivity was associated with increasing age, female gender, nonwhite ethnicity, and a history of STD. HSV-2 seropositivity was also associated with a history of genital herpes, presence of genital sores, and coinfection with either human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or hepatitis C (HCV).


CONCLUSIONS
Herpes simplex infection is common in this high-risk Canadian population. Our finding that HCV seropositivity was a significant predictor for HSV-2 seropositivity emphasizes the overlap between pathogens that are primarily thought to be bloodborne pathogens and sexually transmitted infections and the need to target prevention in these areas concurrently.
Singh
Ameeta E
AE
University of Alberta, Alberta, Canada. ameeta.singh@gov.ab.ca
Romanowski
Barbara
B
Wong
Tom
T
Gourishankar
Sita
S
Myziuk
Linda
L
Fenton
Jayne
J
Preiksaitis
Jutta K
JK
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000416:Alberta / Q000453:epidemiology; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections; D006526:Hepatitis C; D006561:Herpes Simplex / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000821:virology; D018259:Herpesvirus 1, Human / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D018258:Herpesvirus 2, Human / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
D000914:Antibodies, Viral