Department of Microbiology, Saint Savvas Oncology Hospital, 11522 Athens, Greece.
Department of Microbiology, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527 Athens, Greece.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2024 Sep 26;21(10):1283. doi: 10.3390/ijerph21101283.
The beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic was marked by a sharp decline in syphilis infections in many countries worldwide, including Greece. However, a resurgence of positive cases started to appear in the second half of 2020. The aim of this study was to explore the impact of the pandemic on the incidence of new syphilis infections and reinfections and analyze the sociodemographic characteristics associated with recurrent episodes. We analyzed medical records from a 14-month period after the beginning of the pandemic and compared them with the respective period before the start of the pandemic. Our participants consisted mainly of men, with a median age of 43 years, homosexual orientation, and higher education. During COVID-19, more HIV patients presented for syphilis testing (38.0% vs. 34.6%, = 0.025). Overall, we observed almost a two-fold increase in positive syphilis cases during COVID-19 (21.1% vs. 12.4%, < 0.001), with new infections rising from 8.4% to 13.2% and reinfections from 4.0% to 7.9%. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic, among different parameters (such as age, gender, sexual orientation, HIV status, and educational level), was the only factor associated with higher positive syphilis rates (OR 1.47, 95% CI: 1.07-2.01, = 0.003). Our results highlight the need to ensure enhanced prevention and undisrupted healthcare services, with a focus on future pandemics.
新冠疫情大流行之初，全球许多国家（包括希腊）的梅毒感染病例急剧下降。然而，2020 年下半年开始，阳性病例再次出现。本研究旨在探讨疫情对新发梅毒感染和再感染发病率的影响，并分析与复发相关的社会人口学特征。我们分析了疫情开始后 14 个月的医疗记录，并将其与疫情前的相应时期进行了比较。我们的参与者主要是男性，中位年龄为 43 岁，性取向为同性恋，受教育程度较高。在新冠疫情期间，更多的 HIV 患者接受了梅毒检测（38.0%比 34.6%， = 0.025）。总体而言，我们观察到新冠疫情期间阳性梅毒病例几乎增加了两倍（21.1%比 12.4%， < 0.001），新感染从 8.4%上升到 13.2%，再感染从 4.0%上升到 7.9%。多变量逻辑回归分析显示，在不同参数（如年龄、性别、性取向、HIV 状况和教育水平）中，新冠疫情是唯一与更高阳性梅毒率相关的因素（OR 1.47，95%CI：1.07-2.01， = 0.003）。我们的研究结果强调需要确保加强预防和不间断的医疗保健服务，重点关注未来的大流行。
