Burden of Sexually Transmitted Infections in Rajasthan, India: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

There is a notable gap persisting in the existing body of evidence regarding the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the general population in India.

The primary aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive assessment and quantification of the burden of STIs within the state of Rajasthan.

The study findings conformed to the criteria outlined in the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Two reviewers independently conducted an extensive search across multiple databases, which included PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and Shodhganga, along with cross-referencing and manual searches. A standardized data extraction checklist was used to extract the data from the included studies. An appraisal tool for cross-sectional studies was used to assess the risk of bias. A random-effects meta-analysis model was utilized to estimate the pooled prevalence of syphilis among the blood donor population and the general population in Rajasthan.

A total of 2575 articles were screened, and 20 studies met the inclusion criteria. The burden of STI in the general population ranges from 2.2% to 9.09% (gonorrhea, n = 2 studies) and 16% (chlamydia, n = 1 study). Of these, 14 studies in blood donors revealed a pooled prevalence of syphilis as 0.04% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.03%-0.05%). Similarly, in the general population, the pooled prevalence was found to be 0.05% (95% CI, 0.04-0.06).

STIs are an important public health concern with a considerable burden in the population. This review underscores the significance of conducting STI surveillance to identify emerging trends to address specific STIs effectively. In addition, there was a gap in evidence reporting the prevalence of STIs other than syphilis.