HIV-infected pregnant women were at high risk for infection with Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) and Neisseria gonorrhoeae (NG), and these sexually transmitted infections (STIs) may predispose to an increased HIV mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) risk, according to a high-risk cohort study that evaluated 1,373 urine specimens collected at the time of labor and delivery. Researchers determined:

• 18.1% of the urine specimens tested positive for CT and 4.6% for NG; 2.5% had both CT and NG detected.

• Rate of HIV MTCT was 8.5%; the lowest transmission rate occurred among infants born to CT- and NG-uninfected mothers (8.1%), as compared with those infected with only CT (10.7%) and both CT and NG (14.3%).

• Infants born to CT-infected mothers had almost a 1.5-fold increased risk for HIV acquisition (OR, 1.47).

Citation: Adachi K, Klausner JD, Bristow CC, et al. Chlamydia and gonorrhea in HIV-infected pregnant women and infant HIV transmission. Sex Transm Dis. 2015;42(10):554-565. doi: 10.1097/OLQ.0000000000000340.