According to information in the new Policy Brief, Chlamydia trachomatis (chlamydia) is the most common bacterial sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the world. Nationwide, 9% of the young population owns it.
Communications University of Chile.- «Research on Chlamydia, a Sexually Transmitted Infection that Harms Women» is the name of the new Policy Brief promoted by the Transdisciplinary Networks Unit (Redes Td) of the Vice-Rector for Research and Development U. de Chile (VID). The paper addresses the importance of early investigation of this infection as a national public health issue that seeks to avoid serious reproductive complications and the transfer of the bacteria to pregnant women.
The Pan American Health Organization stipulates that the bacterium chlamydia is the most common sexually transmitted infection on the planet, occurring more frequently in sexually active young adults. In Chile, more than 60% of diagnoses are concentrated in sexually active women under 25 years of age.with prevalence in pregnant adolescents of low socioeconomic status.
Being a public health challenge, its prevention and treatment is difficult due to the lack of comprehensive sexual education in the country. To the above is added that the 80% of cases are asymptomatic, generating a low rate of medical review.
Under this scenario, specialists from various areas of knowledge belonging to the University of Chile promoted the Policy Brief “Investigation of Chlamydia, a Sexually Transmitted Infection that Harms Women”. The document seeks to deliver a series of recommendations that stress this issue within the public debate, in addition to guiding self-care and protection in Chilean society.
The writing team was made up of the academic from the Faculty of Medicine U. de Chile, Daniela Capella and Andrés Couve; Fabián Duarte, academic from the UCH Business and Economics Faculty; and the academic from the Faculty of Medicine of the Universidad del Desarrollo, Andrea Huneeus.
For the Professor Andrea Huneeus The issue is extremely urgent because “in Chile up to 9% of those under 25 years of age have chlamydia and do not know they have it due to their few symptoms, being a public health problem.”
For her part, the academic Daniela Capella He pointed out that this is “a silent infection that produces devastating damage, mainly in women. It damages the uterine tubes, which can lead to infertility or tubal pregnancies, which are a serious, life-threatening condition. It also increases the risk of acquiring HIV and that, as carriers of the human papilloma virus (HPV), they may develop cervical cancer.
While, for him academic from the Faculty of Physical and Mathematical Sciences (FCFM) and part of the document’s editing team, Rodrigo Soto, the paper addresses a complex situation in public health, which is linked to gender gaps in the country. “Chlamydia mainly affects women, so its study contributes to reducing gender gaps. In addition, the prevalence and knowledge of STIs also has a socioeconomic component, with which the proposed policies contribute to having a country with fewer inequalities”, mentioned Soto.
preventive diagnosis
After the pandemic caused by Covid-19, the capacity to implement the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test technique was no longer limited throughout the national public and private health network. The socio-sanitary crisis forced its deployment throughout the territory, providing a historic opportunity to prevent other infections and/or diseases through this method.
This is the case of chlamydia, because its screening is carried out using the PCR technique. For this, in the case of women, samples of vaginal secretion or urine must be extracted by self-taking, to later be taken to the laboratory. For its part, in the case of men, STIs rarely cause health problems, so sometimes the infection is detected when the duct that carries semen becomes irritated, causing symptoms such as pain and fever.
Considering the relevance of addressing this topic in a massive way and looking for tools for its prevention and diagnosis, the Casa de Bello researchers evaluated the economic, bio-psychosocial benefits and costs of implementing a chlamydia screening in sexually active and pregnant women in Chile.
Among the identified results, it is found that the national investment in this would allow a improvement in the quality of life of women and newborns, there would be benefits in terms of sexual education on STIs, and it would be a great advance in gender equality.
Recommendations for public policy.
According to Professor Rodrigo Soto, chlamydia has a high prevalence in the population and is not treated “due to ignorance or fear of being discriminated against or stigmatized.”
For this reason, specialists consider it necessary to expand sexual and reproductive education, as part of a public policy on health. In turn, they recommend include the chlamydia PCR sample in the National Standard for Prenatal Controlso that infection control can be expanded, which currently only detects HIV and syphilis.
Given this, Dr. Huneeus also indicated that “it is essential to timely administer the vaccines that we have available and that prevent STIs, such as those for the hepatitis B virus and HPV. In addition to the use of physical barriers to prevent the spread of STIs during sexual activity”
The researchers also propose the inclusion of the annual screening for chlamydia by PCR of sexually active women under 25 years of age in the National Standard for Sexually Transmitted Infections and its incorporation into Notifiable Diseases.
In this way, better health will be allowed, the control of the bacteria under population monitoring and education on the subject would be promoted.
Professor Daniela Capella maintained that “it would be ideal to implement, as soon as possible, quality sexual education and health in schools. That tools be delivered to prevent STIs, unwanted pregnancy, learn about sexual consent, among many other related topics.
For his part, Professor Soto referred to the savings in public health that the implementation of these recommendations would imply, since prevention is cheaper than treatment, saving about seven billion pesos annually. “The document provides a monetary estimate of the costs, which certainly facilitates the evaluation and implementation of the research by relevant actors. For us as the University of Chile, it is relevant to support the generation of better policies, in this case, in the field of public health and fulfilling our national role”, he concluded.
