SUS will have a new double test for HIV and syphilis in pregnant women – 10/22/2023 – Health

The Ministry of Health announced an investment of R$27 million for the acquisition of a double test to detect syphilis and HIV.

With the funds, the department hopes to acquire around 4 million rapid tests, to be distributed to the states by the end of 2023, according to a note released by the Health department last Friday (20). The tests will initially be offered, in addition to pregnant women, to sex workers and men who have relationships with other men.

The rapid test was produced by researchers from Lais (Health Technological Innovation Laboratory), linked to UFRN (Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte), within the “Syphilis No” program, developed by the laboratory and the Ministry of Health, as part of of actions to combat the disease that have been taking place since 2017.

The program, which has the support of PAHO/WHO (Pan American Health Organization), aims to reduce cases of syphilis in pregnant women and babies.

As a report from the Sheet, new cases of syphilis post-pandemic increased in all age groups. 213,000 cases of syphilis were recorded in the country in 2022, according to the ministry’s epidemiological bulletin released last Friday, an increase of 23% compared to the previous year. Congenital syphilis, which is passed from mother to baby, grew by 17.6% between 2011 and 2017, and a subsequent increase of 16.7%.

Although tests to detect syphilis and HIV are part of the prenatal routine, doctors say that pregnant women do not seek diagnosis for fear of a reaction from their partner, as they may suffer domestic violence and aggression if their husband judges that she was unfaithful.

Thus, the availability of dual tests to detect two sexually transmitted infections can help reduce late diagnoses and increase the prevention of new cases, especially in so-called congenital syphilis, passed from mother to baby during pregnancy.

To produce the double tests (called “two tests”), Lais researchers imported inputs and manufactured the first tests used, at first, in a pilot project focused on pregnant women. This stage of the project began in October last year in primary health care in Natal (RN).

Rapid tests use a solid-phase immunochromatographic assay to detect antibodies specific to HIV or Treponema pallidumthe bacteria that causes syphilis, simultaneously in human serum, plasma or whole blood.

The immunochromatographic assay became known for being used during the Covid pandemic in the first form of so-called rapid or serological tests. These tests occur through the connection of a colloidal gold sample with the antigen-antibody set to be investigated, producing a band. The devices for these tests are similar to those used for blood glucose tests, where a drop of blood is collected from the fingertip. Results come out in less than ten minutes.

Although rapid tests for detecting HIV are widely used and distributed by the SUS, the use of rapid tests for syphilis ends up having a smaller reach than expected, according to the government itself.

In addition to the increase in syphilis, the country is also facing an increase in other STIs, especially among younger people.

Despite being a pioneer in the provision of antiretrovirals by the SUS for the treatment of AIDS, Brazil only met 1 of the 3 targets proposed by the WHO to combat the epidemic. As a result, the number of older people living with the virus has grown.

Recently, the Ministry of Health also released a new protocol of therapeutic guidelines for patients living with HIV/AIDS focused on the older public. The initiative, as well as the “Syphilis No” project, is part of the government’s goal of eliminating or controlling, by 2030, 14 diseases with high incidence in regions of greater social vulnerability, such as HIV and syphilis.