Hepatitis C virus infection and biological false-positive syphilis tests. Academic Article uri icon

Overview

abstract

  • BACKGROUND: The diagnosis of syphilis requires two-step serological testing. Not infrequently, sensitive screening tests are reactive but are not confirmed by more specific confirmatory tests yielding a biological false positive (BFP). This study sought to describe the prevalence of BFP in a large population of hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected and uninfected women. METHODS: A cross-sectional serosurvey of HIV-seropositive and HIV-seronegative women enrolled in the Women's Interagency HIV Study, a multicentre collaborative study of the natural history of HIV in women. RESULTS: Among HCV-infected women 4% had a BFP compared with 1% among those who were HCV uninfected (odds ratio (OR) 3.3, 95% CI 2.1 to 5.1). Controlling for both HIV infection and a history of intravenous drug use among all tests for syphilis a BFP also occurred more commonly in HCV-infected women compared with HCV-uninfected women (6% vs 1%, OR 7.62, 95% CI 1.9 to 12.5). CONCLUSION: HCV infection is associated with various effects on immune function including alterations in serological test results. Women with HCV are more likely to have a BFP syphilis test than women without HCV.

publication date

  • April 1, 2010

Research

keywords

  • Hepatitis C, Chronic
  • Syphilis

Identity

PubMed Central ID

  • PMC2981071

Scopus Document Identifier

  • 77950137459

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  • 10.1136/sti.2009.040360

PubMed ID

  • 20332367

Additional Document Info

volume

  • 86

issue

  • 2