Investigation of association between female genital tract diseases and Schistosomiasis japonica infection

Abstract

With the support of WHO/TDR, a case-control study was undertaken to explore the association between female genital tract manifestation and Schistosomiasis japonica. Two thousand one hundred and six women aged 18-50 in a township with schistosomiasis japonica infection rate of >15% were surveyed using modified Kato-Katz method qualitatively and quantitatively. Two hundred and forty four women with schistosomiasis japonica were selected as experimental group and 236 matched healthy women as control group. Sixty nine items including cervix smear and the S. japonicum circulating antigen in intrauterine lavage were investigated. The results showed that physically, menstrual disorder and shorter stature and lighter weight of the first newborn occurred more frequently in the experimental group than that in control group. As for female genital tract manifestation, there were more cases with chronic cervicitis and uterine enlargement in the experimental group than that in the control group. Schistosome circulating antigen was detected in intrauterine lavage from 13 cases with schistosomiasis by ELISA. No evidence was found to show that female genital tract diseases be directly caused by S. japonicum, but the findings emerging from this survey merit further study.