title: Sexually transmitted infections based on the syndromic approach in Gondar town, northwest Ethiopia: a retrospective study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Sexually transmitted infections are among the most common causes of illnesses in the world and have far reaching health, social and economic consequences. They are important because of their magnitude, potential complications and interactions with HIV/AIDS. Though the problem may be generally similar to other developing countries, there is scarce information on the incidence and prevalence of sexually transmitted infections in Ethiopia. This study was then aimed to determine the magnitude of sexually transmitted infections among patients visiting a clinic in Gondar town, Northwest Ethiopia.
  
  
  METHODS
  Medical records of patients who visited the clinic from January 2011 to December 2011 were reviewed. Sociodemographic and clinical data were extracted using data extraction form. The data were entered and analyzed using SPSS version 16 statistical package. Descriptive statistics and Chi-square tests were carried out.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 1071 clients visited the clinic during the study period. Among these, 383 (35.8%) had complained symptoms of sexually transmitted infections. The mean (SD) age of the patients was 26.8 ± 7.4 years. The commonest chief complaints were vaginal discharge (38.4%) and urethral discharge (13.6%). Seventy seven percent of the cases did not bring their sexual partners for treatment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There was a high magnitude of STIs in the clinic according to the syndromic approach. However, the actual prevalence of STIs and the associated factors in the community need to be determined through further studies. The results of this study also urge the need for evaluation of the syndromic approach and test for antimicrobial resistance.
authors: Department of Immunology and Molecular Biology, School of Biomedical and Laboratory Sciences, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, PO Box 196, Gondar, Ethiopia. beyemoges@gmail.com
authors: Beyene
authors: B
authors: Moges
authors: Gizachew
authors: G
authors: Yismaw
authors: Afework
authors: A
authors: Kassu
authors: Berihun
authors: B
authors: Megabiaw
authors: Shitaye
authors: S
authors: Alemu
authors: Bemnet
authors: B
authors: Amare
authors: Dagnachew
authors: D
authors: Muluye
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005002:Ethiopia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006268:Health Facilities; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008499:Medical Records / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult