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

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) pose a global public health threat, with over 30 pathogens known to spread sexually. In 2020, the World Health Organization reported 374 million new cases, with varied prevalence in India, especially among at-risk groups.

The objective of the study was to assess the prevalence of syphilis, chlamydia, and gonorrhea among the general population and blood donors in Madhya Pradesh.

Study findings adhered to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Two reviewers independently searched databases-PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and ShodhGanga-along with manually checking references of included articles and systematic reviews. A standardized checklist guided data extraction. The risk of bias was assessed using the appraisal tool for cross-sectional studies tool for cross-sectional studies. Quantitative results were presented in a Forest plot via MetaXL software, using a random-effects meta-analysis model to estimate the pooled prevalence of syphilis among the general population and blood donors in Madhya Pradesh.

A review was conducted on 2943 articles to assess their eligibility. Seventeen studies met the inclusion criteria. The pooled prevalence of syphilis in seven studies involving the general population was found to be 0.4%, with a 95% confidence interval (CI) ranging from 0.1% to 0.7%. Studies on blood donors have a combined prevalence of 0.32% (95% CI, 0.25%-0.39%, n = 8 studies) in Madhya Pradesh.

This review highlights STIs as an ongoing public health issue in Madhya Pradesh and underscores the need for surveillance to detect emerging patterns and address specific STIs effectively.