Increased risk of chlamydial and gonococcal infection in adolescent sex workers in Madagascar.
OBJECTIVE
To examine and compare young sex workers' risk of acquisition of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) with the risk among their older counterparts.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the effect of young age--16-19 years vs. 20 years and older--on risk of incident infection with Neisseria gonorrhoeae (GC) or Chlamydia trachomatis (CT).


METHODS
A randomized controlled trial of 1,000 sex workers in Madagascar was conducted. STI testing was conducted at baseline, 6, 12, and 18 months.


RESULTS
About 13% of the cohort (n = 134) was composed of young women aged 16-19 years. STI incidence rates in this group over the 18-month study period were high: 51.9/100 woman-years (WY) for GC and 47.4/100 WY for CT compared to 27.4/100 WY and 19.1/100 WY for sex workers over age 20, respectively. In multivariable models, young sex workers were at significantly higher STI risk compared with their older peers: The adjusted risk ratio (aRR) for GC comparing younger to older women was 1.50 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.20, 1.88); for CT, the aRR was 1.72 (95% CI: 1.35, 2.19) and for GC or CT combined, the aRR was 1.42 (95% CI: 1.22, 1.66).


CONCLUSIONS
This exploratory analysis suggests that additional research is warranted to identify effective and acceptable prevention strategies that benefit young women, and interventions already proven effective among adolescents should be given high priority for scale-up.
Pettifor
Audrey E
AE
Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, USA. apettif@email.unc.edu
Turner
Abigail Norris
AN
Van Damme
Kathleen
K
Hatzell-Hoke
Theresa
T
Rasamindrakotroka
Andry
A
Nasution
Marlina D
MD
Behets
Frieda
F
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016010:Binomial Distribution; D002690:Chlamydia Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006069:Gonorrhea / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008270:Madagascar / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D011477:Sex Work; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*