Congenital and gestational syphilis: notification and prenatal care

Abstract

Introduction: Syphilis is an acute and chronic infectious disease, which can be transmitted by direct contact both in pregnancy and in the postpartum period. It presents high rates of vertical transmission, and it is considered an easily preventable disease. Objective: To describe the epidemiological profile of reported cases of congenital and gestational syphilis, as well as to verify possible relationships between socio-demographic and clinical factors associated with notifications of congenital syphilis. Patients and Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with descriptive design, using quantitative-analytical approach, in which all (2009 to 2015), and (2008 to 2014), in the city of Maringá, Paraná State, Brazil, gathered from the Information System on Notifiable Diseases. Maternal characteristics were compared through relative frequency, which were considered statistically significant by the Qui-square test (p < 0.05). Strength of associations was determined by odds ratio, with a 95% confidence interval in the logistic regression. Subsequently, the HL test was applied to analyze variables presenting at least a moderate association (p < 0.25) with commitment to treatment by the qui-square test. Results: Results showed that 120 cases of and 103 cases of were reported. Of these, there was an increasing trend in the incidence of from 2012, with a 200% increase in notifications from 2014 to 2015. Cases of were more frequent in mothers with age ranging from 20 to 30 years old (50.49%), and with low schooling (86.41% attended up to eight years of schooling). It was observed that 94.17% of children who were reported with were born from mothers who underwent prenatal care. However, the mothers were properly treated only in 42.72% of the cases. The analysis showed that 61% of the children from the mothers notified with gestational syphilis were not notified with congenital syphilis. Conclusion: A high incidence of cases was found in the city of Maringá. The factors associated with congenital syphilis indicated failures in prenatal care, especially in the inadequate treatment of pregnant women and their partners. Thus, it is necessary to reorient the strategies in order to reduce the incidence of this morbidity.