Profile of sexually transmitted infections among males in a South Indian suburban tertiary care teaching hospital: a one year retrospective study

Abstract

Background: The profile of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is variable due to changes in socio-economic, cultural, geographic & environmental factors in different parts of the country. However, baseline information about the epidemiology of STIs remains essential for designing, implementing and monitoring of successful targeted interventions. The study was conducted with the aim to study the frequency of various STIs among male patients attending the STI outpatient department (OPD) of our hospital during a period of one year.Methods: This is a retrospective study, wherein data collected from January 2016 to December 2016 regarding male attendees to STI clinic in our hospital was used to assess the occurrence of various STIs among male patients during that period.Results: Among the study group (266), most common STI was scabies (33.83%) followed by balanoposthitis (33.08%) and anogenital warts (10.9%). It was also noted that 71% of scabies occurrence was during Jan to April and then December, compared to other months. Early syphilis (Primary/secondary) was detected in 3 subjects. Syphilis occurrence was lower than data from some previous Indian studies. Conclusions: There is considerable variation in the incidence of STIs among various regions of our country. There is also a change in occurrence of various STIs over last 2 decades. The reasons could include over-the-counter antibiotic use and more frequent use of antibiotics for other diseases than in the past.