Chlamydia Positivity in American Indian/Alaska Native Women Screened in Family Planning Clinics, 1997–2004

Health of Indigenous Peoples

Indigenous populations worldwide are experiencing social, cultural, demographic, nutritional, and psychoemotional changes that have a profound impact on health. Regardless of their geographical location or sociopolitical situation, health indicators are always poorer for indigenous populations than for nonindigenous ones. The determinants of this gap are multiple and interactive, and their analysis requires a biocultural framework. Indigenous populations suffer from lower life expectancy, high infant and child mortality, high maternal morbidity and mortality, heavy infectious disease loads, malnutrition, stunted growth, increasing levels of cardiovascular and other chronic diseases, substance abuse, and depression. The devastating effects of colonization, the loss of ancestral land, and language and cultural barriers for access to health care are among the most salient themes characterizing the poor health situation of indigenous people. Anthropology is extremely well suited to address the interplay among social, economic, and political forces that shape the local experiences of illness.

Predictors identifying those at increased risk for STDs: a theory-guided review of empirical literature and clinical guidelines

SummarySexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are leading causes of substantial morbidity worldwide. Identification of risk factors for estimating STD risk provides opportunities for optimising service delivery in clinical settings, including improving case finding accuracy and increasing cost-efficiency by limiting the testing of low-risk individuals. The current study was undertaken to synthesise the evidence supporting commonly cited chlamydia and gonorrhoea risk factors. The level of empirical support for the following predictors was strong/moderate: age, race/ethnicity, multiple lifetime sexual partners, sex with symptomatic partners and concurrent STD diagnosis. The following predictors had weak evidence: socio-economic status, transactional sex, drug/alcohol use, condom use and history of STD diagnosis. The most frequently listed predictors among nine clinical guidelines were younger age and multiple sexual partners; the least consistently listed predictor was inconsistent condom use. We found reasonably good concordance between risk factors consistently listed in the recommendations and predictors found to have strong empirical support in the literature. There is a need to continue building the evidence base to explicate the mechanisms and pathways of STD acquisition. We recommend periodic reviews of the level of support of predictors included in clinical guidelines to ensure that they are in accordance with empirical evidence.

Screening and management of genital chlamydial infections

Chlamydial genital infection is common and asymptomatic in most cases. National screening efforts developed to educate practitioners, expand screening, and link testing to local health laboratories are not meeting the needs of populations at great risk of disease, including young racial/ethnic minority women and sexual minorities. The development and availability of newer diagnostics will likely make chlamydia testing more efficient and widely available for patients and providers. Practitioners are reminded to have a low threshold to offer testing and presumptive treatment to patients that are deemed at high risk of disease, particularly those who are challenging to engage in care.

Chlamydia positivity in women screened in family planning clinics: racial/ethnic differences and trends in the northwest U.S., 1997-2006

OBJECTIVES

We assessed chlamydia trends, individual-level risk factors, and population-level area-based socioeconomic measures (ABSMs) associated with chlamydia infection in women attending U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) Region X Infertility Prevention Project (IPP) family planning (FP) clinics from 1997-2006. We then explored these measures within racial/ethnic subpopulations.

METHODS

Using data from 667,223 chlamydia tests obtained from women aged 15-24 years screened in 201 FP clinics, we employed a generalized mixed model with logistic link, incorporating clinic and ZIP code as random effects to adjust for risk of chlamydia associated with individual- and population-level (areal) measures for the overall population and for each racial/ethnic subpopulation.

RESULTS

Significant racial/ethnic differences in chlamydia persisted after adjusting for individual and aggregate factors. Relatively steep chlamydia gradients were found across racial/ethnic ABSM levels. Compared with white women, infection risk was significantly higher for black (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.93), American Indian/Alaska Native (AOR=1.62), Asian/Pacific Islander (AOR=1.42), and Hispanic (AOR=1.28) women. The impact of population-level ABSMs on chlamydia varied across racial/ethnic groups and was generally modest. Among white women, there was a significant 4% relative annual increase in predicted chlamydia during the 10-year period 1997-2006. Chlamydia positivity over time did not change for racial/ethnic minority groups after adjusting for individual- and population-level factors.

CONCLUSIONS

Racial/ethnic differences in chlamydia persisted over time and were not mitigated by adjustment for aggregate socioeconomic position or areal racial/ethnic measures. Changes in project strategies will be needed to address racial/ethnic disparities for chlamydial infection among young female FP clinic clients.

Chlamydia trachomatis infection among women reporting sexual activity with women screened in Family Planning Clinics in the Pacific Northwest, 1997 to 2005

OBJECTIVES

We sought to define Chlamydia trachomatis positivity among women who report sexual activity with women, a population for which sparse data on this infection are available and for whom health disparities including challenged access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services, have been reported.

METHODS

We analyzed data from 9358 family planning clinic visits with C trachomatis tests among women aged 15 to 24 years who reported sexual activity within the past year exclusively with women (WSW) or with men and women (WSMW), in the Region X Infertility Prevention Project. Characteristics were compared with women who reported sexual activity exclusively with men (WSM). Results. C trachomatis positivity among both WSW and WSMW was 7.1%, compared with 5.3% among WSM. Behavioral risks were more commonly reported by WSW and WSMW, compared with reports by WSM. Risks for C trachomatis positivity were comparable across groups and included younger age, non-White race, behavioral risks, and clinical signs.

CONCLUSIONS

Higher C trachomatis positivity among women reporting same-sex sexual behavior supports investigation into potential explanatory factors, including sexual behaviors, biological susceptibility, routine C trachomatis screening disparities, sexual identity disclosure, and sexual network assessment.

Sexually transmitted diseases among American Indians in Arizona: an important public health disparity

OBJECTIVE

We conducted an analysis of rates, geographic distribution, and time to treatment of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and early syphilis (ES) among Arizona American Indians (AIs) to address racial disparities affecting this group.

METHODS

We used the Arizona Department of Health Services' sexually transmitted disease (STD) surveillance database to identify STD cases and calculate rates among AIs in Arizona from 2003 to 2007. We mapped AI ES cases reported during that time frame by reported resident ZIP code, calculated days elapsed from specimen collection to initial treatment, and compared rates and time to treatment for AIs with those of non-Hispanic white (NHW) individuals.

RESULTS

Annual Arizona AI STD rates for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and ES from 2003 to 2007 ranged from 2.7 to 7.8 times those of NHW people. During the same time period, the annual rates for all three STDs among adolescents aged 15 to 19 years were also higher among AIs and ranged from 2.0 to 14.8 times those of NHW individuals. The majority of cases for ES reported ZIP codes located in the northeastern and southern central portions of the state. The median time to treatment in AI populations was significantly longer than in NHW populations for chlamydia and gonorrhea, but not for ES.

CONCLUSIONS

High rates of STDs have been identified among AIs in certain regions of Arizona. Additionally, there are significant delays in treatment for gonorrhea and chlamydia. STD prevention and education programs that prioritize this health disparity and promote expeditious screening, diagnosis, and treatment are needed.