Ben Moussa Mouna Louiza, Hamdoun Manel, Cherni Hamza, Bahri Olfa
Laboratory of Microbiology and Biochemistry, Aziza Othmana Hospital, Tunis, Tunisia.
BMC Infect Dis. 2025 Apr 7;25(1):470. doi: 10.1186/s12879-025-10843-4.
Rubella is considered as a benign childhood infection. Congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) can result from the virus's teratogenic potential, making the infection dangerous for pregnant women, particularly in the first trimester. Immunization is the only effective prevention against rubella and CRS in the absence of specific treatment. Since 2005, the rubella vaccine has been available in Tunisia. This study aimed to assess, eighteen years after the implementation of the program's vaccination in the country, its effect on rubella seroprevalence in women of reproductive age.
This retrospective cross-sectional study was performed from January 2021 to December 2023 at Aziza Othmana Hospital (Tunis), which has one of the biggest obstetrical and assisted medical procreation units in Tunisia. Each woman consulting in one of these two units was screened for rubella-IgG antibodies by electrochemiluminescence assay using the Elecsys Rubella IgG Kit and the Cobas e411 analyzer (Roche Diagnostics, Mannhein). Woman was considered immunized when titer of IgG was ≥ 10 UI/mL. All samples with titers over 500 UI/mL were tested for specific IgM by the same method.
During the study period, 1652 women were enrolled; their age ranged from 18 to 46 years old (33.4 ± 5.3 years). Overall, the proportion of women who were protected against rubella was 93.9%; it was significantly higher among those who were part of the immunization programs (96.6% vs. 93.2%; p = 0.01). The median level of Rubella IgG in this first group was 175 ± 159 IU/mL. Women, who were not caught up by the strategy of vaccination, were seronegative in 6.8% of cases. Rubella IgM antibodies were negative in all the 143 cases tested excluding recent infection.
These findings demonstrate the effectiveness of the rubella vaccine, which is administered systematically as part of the national immunization schedule in all one-year-old infants. Nonetheless, the persistent vulnerability for rubellain susceptible women in their reproductive years highlights the importance of their vaccination during the pre-conception or in early postpartum phases.
Not applicable, as this study is not a clinical trial.
风疹被认为是一种良性的儿童感染性疾病。先天性风疹综合征（CRS）可由该病毒的致畸潜力导致，这使得该感染对孕妇来说很危险，尤其是在孕早期。在缺乏特异性治疗的情况下，免疫接种是预防风疹和CRS的唯一有效方法。自2005年以来，突尼斯已有风疹疫苗。本研究旨在评估在该国实施该疫苗接种计划18年后，其对育龄妇女风疹血清阳性率的影响。
这项回顾性横断面研究于2021年1月至2023年12月在阿齐扎·奥斯曼娜医院（突尼斯）进行，该医院拥有突尼斯最大的产科和辅助生殖医疗单位之一。在这两个单位之一就诊的每位女性均使用Elecsys风疹IgG试剂盒和Cobas e411分析仪（罗氏诊断公司，曼海姆）通过电化学发光法筛查风疹IgG抗体。当IgG滴度≥10 UI/mL时，该女性被视为已免疫。所有滴度超过500 UI/mL的样本均通过相同方法检测特异性IgM。
在研究期间，共纳入1652名女性；年龄范围为18至46岁（33.4±5.3岁）。总体而言，对风疹具有免疫力的女性比例为93.9%；在参与免疫接种计划的女性中这一比例显著更高（96.6%对93.2%；p = 0.01）。第一组中风疹IgG的中位数水平为175±159 IU/mL。未参与疫苗接种策略的女性中，6.8%的病例血清学呈阴性。在所有143例排除近期感染的检测病例中，风疹IgM抗体均为阴性。
这些结果证明了风疹疫苗的有效性，该疫苗作为国家免疫规划的一部分，在所有一岁婴儿中系统接种。尽管如此，育龄期易感女性对风疹仍持续易感，这凸显了在孕前或产后早期对她们进行疫苗接种的重要性。
不适用，因为本研究不是临床试验。
