A retrospective study of the prevalence and outcomes of syphilis in pregnancy in a 5-year period

To determine the prevalence of syphilis in pregnancy and to assess the effect of syphilis on maternal and perinatal outcomes.

In a retrospective study, data were reviewed for pregnant women who tested positive for syphilis during routine prenatal screening at a center in India between January 2011 and December 2015. Women with both a positive venereal disease research laboratory (VDRL) test and a positive Treponema pallidum hemagglutination assay (TPHA) were considered to have syphilis, and their maternal and fetal outcomes were assessed.

Among 51 164 pregnant women who underwent VDRL testing during the study period, 343 women were VDRL-positive (seropositivity rate 0.7%) and 18 were both VDRL- and TPHA-positive and were considered to have syphilis (seropositivity rate <0.1%). Among these 18 women, there were two stillbirths, four preterm births, and five small-for-gestational-age neonates.

Although the prevalence of syphilis was low in the study population, women who were affected had adverse perinatal outcomes. Routine screening of all pregnant women for syphilis as early as possible in pregnancy, with appropriate treatment and follow-up of affected women and newborns, should be done to reduce adverse pregnancy outcomes.