Serological Confirmed Syphilis Among Transgender Women in Dominican Republic

Transgender women (TW) in the Dominican Republic (DR) are at high risk for syphillis infection. Although treatable, infection rates remain at epidemic proportions.

In 2016, we conducted a national survey, with serological sampling of TW in the DR (n=255).

In our sample, syphillis seropositivity was 47.45%. There was a statistically significant association between age (t=-2.93, df, p<0.01), arrest history (χ ²=8.15, p<0.01), exposure to violence (χ ²=3.73, p<0.05), and syphilis seropositivity. Multivariate analyses show TW arrested in the past 6 months have higher odds of seropositivity (odds ratio=2.05, confidence interval: 1.04-4.06, p<0.05).

There is a need for education and public health campaigns focused on TW specifically.