Associations Found Between Birth Defects and Common STIs in Pregnancy

A new study in The Lancet Regional Health – Western Pacific identified a link between “common [STIs] during pregnancy and a higher risk of significant birth complications such as preterm birth, stillbirth, and babies born small for gestational age.” CIDRAP has the news.

Study author Jennifer Dunne emphasizes that “we need additional checks [for STIs] later in pregnancy, especially in high-risk areas” since many of the infections that cause issues are “common, preventable, and treatable.”

The study was based on 60,000 births from 2005 to 2020 and “maternal infectious disease notifications of four STIs: chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, and syphilis.” Among the births, “there were 1,538 incidents of chlamydia, 828 incidents of gonorrhea, 2,366 incidents of trichomoniasis, and 109 of syphilis. Fifty-one babies were born with congenital chlamydia, and 23 were born with congenital syphilis.” Congenital syphilis also had a “positive association with preterm birth.”

Associations were also observed “between gonorrhea and stillbirth…and trichomoniasis and preterm birth.”