title: Need for syphilis screening and counselling in HIV counselling and testing centres: a curtain raiser study from north India.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Voluntary counselling and testing centres (VCTC) are important HIV screening points for the population with suspicion or apprehension for HIV, because of high-risk exposures. Theoretically, these are also at the risk of having co-infections, commonest being syphilis. The present short-term study was aimed at knowing the sero-reactivity of syphilis among a study cohort attending the VCTC in King George's Medical University, Lucknow, India.
  
  
  METHODS
  During a 2.5-month period, 49 HIV-positive and 171 HIV-negative sera were tested for venereal disease research laboratory (VDRL). The positive sera were further tested for treponema pallidum haemagglutination (TPHA).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eleven (22.4%) HIV-positive sera and 104 (60.8%) HIV-negative sera were VDRL-reactive (>or=1:8 dilutions). Of these, TPHA was reactive in three (27.3%) and four (3.9%), respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The result might suggest the need for routine screening and counselling for syphilis at VCTC. Studies from other centres on larger population are required.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow, India. nagranjan@gmail.com
authors.forename: Vijaya Lakshmi
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Nag
authors.forename: Nihar Ranjan
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Dash
authors.forename: Ashutosh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pathak
authors.forename: Surendra Kumar
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Agarwal