Dataset Information

A proposal for changes to the European Union syphilis surveillance case definition using evidence from evaluations in Ireland.

ABSTRACT: Syphilis remains a disease of public health importance, with considerable health effects if not treated. Concurrent infection with syphilis and untreated HIV facilitates HIV transmission. The incidence of syphilis in Europe has been increasing, particularly among men who have sex with men (MSM) and in MSM with HIV. However, there is heterogeneity among countries in the case definition used for syphilis and in reported syphilis notification rates. In Ireland, we have undertaken a number of refinements of the national syphilis surveillance system since 2014, including refinement of the laboratory thresholds for notification (rapid plasma reagin 1:16 and/or positive IgM). This article outlines the steps taken and some of the challenges we faced. Our current case definition now accurately reflects the epidemiology of syphilis in Ireland and our current surveillance provides timely information for action, while not reducing the sensitivity of the system too much. For countries where surveillance is driven mainly by laboratory reporting and where obtaining clinical details is challenging, these thresholds for notification may be a pragmatic solution.

SUBMITTER: Petty-Saphon N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6852312 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

A proposal for changes to the European Union syphilis surveillance case definition using evidence from evaluations in Ireland.

Petty-Saphon Naomi N Brady Melissa M Cullen Gillian G Cooney Fionnuala F Downes Phil P Doyle Sarah S Holder Paul P Lyons Fiona F Igoe Derval D

Euro surveillance : bulletin Europeen sur les maladies transmissibles = European communicable disease bulletin 20191101 45

Syphilis remains a disease of public health importance, with considerable health effects if not treated. Concurrent infection with syphilis and untreated HIV facilitates HIV transmission. The incidence of syphilis in Europe has been increasing, particularly among men who have sex with men (MSM) and in MSM with HIV. However, there is heterogeneity among countries in the case definition used for syphilis and in reported syphilis notification rates. In Ireland, we have undertaken a number of refine ...[more]

PMID: 31718743

Similar Datasets

Project description:BACKGROUND:European Gonococcal Antimicrobial Surveillance Programme (Euro-GASP) antimicrobial resistance (AMR) data are used to inform gonorrhoea treatment guidelines; therefore the data need to be robust and representative. We assessed the extent to which Euro-GASP reflects national measures of the AMR situation for Neisseria gonorrhoeae across the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA). METHODS:We compared data from Euro-GASP with published national gonococcal AMR data from 15 countries for azithromycin, cefixime and ciprofloxacin for the period 2009 to 2013 and performed Poisson regression to identify differences (p?<?0.05) between the proportions of resistant isolates. The 2014 Euro-GASP AMR data for each country (n?=?19) were weighted to account for differences in the distribution of patient characteristics between Euro-GASP and EU/EEA epidemiological gonorrhoea surveillance data. Data were compared to determine whether estimates of resistance levels differed with regards to the 5% threshold used to assess the clinical utility of first-line gonorrhoea treatments. We assessed the quality of decentralised testing by comparing AMR data for isolates tested both centrally and in the participating laboratories, and by evaluating external quality assessment (EQA) performance. RESULTS:There was no significant difference for azithromycin, cefixime and ciprofloxacin resistance when Euro-GASP country data were compared with data from national reports. Weighting slightly altered the Euro-GASP AMR estimates (by between -?4.7 and 4.7% from the unweighted estimates). Weighting resulted in greater changes in estimates of resistance to azithromycin (from -?9.5 to 2.7%) and ciprofloxacin (from -?14.8 to 17.9%) in countries with low isolate numbers and low completeness of reporting (n?=?3). Weighting caused AMR levels to fall below or above the 5% threshold for cefixime or azithromycin, respectively in only two countries. Susceptibility category data submitted from the decentralised Euro-GASP laboratories were concordant with the Euro-GASP data (>?90%). EQA performance was also good; <?5% of the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) results differed by >?4-fold from the modal MIC of the EQA isolate. CONCLUSIONS:The overall prevalence of AMR reported by Euro-GASP reflects closely the AMR situation for N. gonorrhoeae in the EU/EEA. Euro-GASP data can be used to provide robust AMR estimates to inform the European guideline for the management of gonorrhoea.

Dataset Information

A proposal for changes to the European Union syphilis surveillance case definition using evidence from evaluations in Ireland.

Publications

A proposal for changes to the European Union syphilis surveillance case definition using evidence from evaluations in Ireland.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets