Trichomoniasis is a common sexually transmitted disease (STD) caused by
Trichomonas vaginalis. The current study was conducted during the period
from February 2013 to April 2014 to investigate the epidemiology of
trichomoniasis in Iraqi women. A total of 154 women of different ages were
enrolled in this study. Two vaginal swabs (one for direct microscopical
examination and the other for culturing) and a blood sample were collected
from each woman. A consent form which included age, area of residence,
educational level and socioeconomic status, in addition to the symptoms
were obtained from the participants.
Wet mount examination and culturing revealed 13.63% and 34.41%
infection rate with trichmoniasis respectively. Based on culturing method,
age class of 25-34years had the highest rate of infection (49.01%); while
infection among urban resident (30.2%) was lower than that of rural
(41.37%). Women with primary educational level and low economic status
showed higher prevalence of trichomoniasis (44.9% and 44.6% respectively)
than other levels and statuses.
About 83% of the studied women had joint pain, while 73.58% of them
had profuse vaginal discharge. Other less frequent symptoms; dysuria,
malodor, vulvular itching, and cervical abnormalities represented 67.92%,
62.26%, 58.49% and 41.5% respectively. However, 11.32% of infected
women were asymptomatic.
These results indicate the high prevalence of trichomoniasis among Iraqi
women which should sound the alarm for the official institution to take their
efforts against this STD.
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September,2014
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