Gonor¬rhea and syphilis co-infection and related risk factors in HIV patients from Shiraz, South of Iran

Background: Neisseria gonorrhea and Treponema pallidum as an obligate human pathogen are two common causes of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of N. gonorrhoeae and T. pallidum among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients in the southwest Iran. Methods: This retrospective study was performed from 2004 to 2013, on HIV patients who were tested for detection of gonorrhea and syphilis infection at Shiraz HIV/AIDS Research Center. ELISA technique was used for preliminary detection of HIV and confirmed by a Western Blotting test. Gonorrhea was routinely diagnosed using direct Gram-staining and culturing on selective agar. Syphilis was routinely diagnosed by RPR test. Results: Of the 806 HIV patients, 39 (2.6%) cases had co-infection with gonor¬rhea. Compared with mono-HIV infected patients, gonor¬rhea was significantly more likely among the males (69.4% vs. 92.3%, P=0.002). History of addiction and prison seems to be a significant risk factor for gonor¬rhea infection (P