PREVALENCE OF CHLAMYDIA TRACHOMATIS INFECTION IN INFERTILE WOMEN ATTENDING FERTILITY CLINICS IN BENIN CITY, NIGERIA: A PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN

ABSTRACT This study was carried out to deduce the prevalence of Chlamydia infection amongst infertile women attending fertility clinics in Benin City, Nigeria. Fifty infertile women with either primary or secondary infertility and with their ages ranging from 24 to 51 years were enrolled for this study. The serum of each patient was screened for Chlamydia antibodies with the enzyme-linked immune-sorbent assay (ELISA) and immunoglobulin G (IgG) index of 0.90 or less was reported as seronegative for IgG antibody, while IgG index of 1.00 or greater were positive for IgG antibody. Findings in the present study revealed that 24 % to 52 % of the patients that attend the fertility clinics in Benin City, Nigeria were most likely to be infected with Chlamydia; with the primary infertile patients accounting for 32 % of the cases and secondary infertile patients for 68 % of the cases. Prevalence of Chlamydia infection was also found to be quite high amongst women aged between 36 and 40 years old. Since lack of symptoms often makes the clinical diagnosis of Chlamydia infection somewhat difficult, thus increasing the prevalence of this disease; routine screening is recommended to enable early therapeutic interventions of positive cases