Matching HIV, tuberculosis, viral hepatitis, and sexually transmitted diseases surveillance data, 2000-2010: identification of infectious disease syndemics in New York City.

CONTEXT

In 2012, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene matched HIV, tuberculosis, viral hepatitis, and sexually transmitted disease surveillance data to identify the burden of infection with multiple diseases.

METHODS

HIV, tuberculosis, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis surveillance data from 2000 to 2010 were matched using a deterministic method. Data on deaths from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's Office of Vital Statistics were also matched.

RESULTS

The final data set contained 840,248 people; 13% had 2 or more diseases. People with a report of syphilis had the highest proportion of matches with other diseases (64%), followed by gonorrhea (52%), HIV (31%), tuberculosis (23%), hepatitis C (20%), chlamydia (16%), and hepatitis B (11%).

CONCLUSIONS

The findings indicate several possible infectious disease syndemics in New York City and highlight the need to integrate surveillance data from different infectious disease programs. Conducting the match brought surveillance programs together to work collaboratively and has resulted in ongoing partnerships on programmatic activities that address multiple diseases.