Home > Research > Publications & Outputs > Longitudinal association of gonorrhea and bacte...

Links

Text available via DOI:

View graph of relations

Longitudinal association of gonorrhea and bacterial vaginosis with repeat chlamydia diagnosis among U.S. Army females: a retrospective cohort analysis

Research output: Contribution to Journal/MagazineJournal articlepeer-review

Published
Close
Article number37
<mark>Journal publication date</mark>30/10/2018
<mark>Journal</mark>Military Medical Research
Volume5
Number of pages7
Publication StatusPublished
<mark>Original language</mark>English

Abstract

Background
Historically, sexually transmitted infections have affected the health of the U.S. military. To determine whether gonorrhea, bacterial vaginosis, genital herpes, and trichomoniasis are predictors of repeat chlamydia diagnoses among U.S. Army women, medical data reported into the Defense Medical Surveillance System during the 2006–2012 period were analyzed.

Methods
For all inpatient and outpatient medical records, the first and second International Classification of Diseases, version 9 (ICD-9) diagnostic positions were reviewed for each chlamydia case to determine the occurrence of repeat diagnoses. The Andersen-Gill regression model, an extension of the Cox model for multiple failure-time data, was used to study associations between predictors and repeat chlamydia diagnoses.

Results
Among 28,201 women with a first chlamydia diagnosis, 5145 (18.2%), 1163 (4.1%), 267 (0.9%), and 88 (0.3%) had one, two, three, and four or more repeat diagnoses, respectively. Overall, the incidence of repeat chlamydia was 8.31 cases per 100 person-years, with a median follow-up time of 3.39 years. Gonorrhea (hazard ratio (HR) = 1.58, 95% CI: 1.44–1.73) and bacterial vaginosis (HR = 1.40, 95% CI: 1.09–1.79) were significant predictors for repeat chlamydia. These estimated hazard ratios were attenuated, but remained significant, after controlling for age, race/ethnicity, marital status, and military rank. No significant association was found for genital herpes (HR = 1.13, 95% CI: 0.55–2.29) and trichomoniasis (HR = 1.43, 95% CI: 0.43–4.68).

Conclusions
This large cohort study suggests that gonorrhea and bacterial vaginosis were associated with repeat chlamydia diagnoses among U.S. Army women. These findings can be used in formulating new interventions to prevent repeat chlamydia diagnoses.