Prevalence and Risk Factors of Chlamydia trachomatis Infection in Female Sex Workers Living in Isfahan, Iran: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) has been considered as a major health problem worldwide given the high incidence of the infection, estimated to be 131 million new cases annually. The aim of the current study was to determine the prevalence of CT infection in female sex workers (FSWs) living in Isfahan, Iran and risks associated with its prevalence. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study, which was conducted on 99 FSWs recruited from two drop-in centers (DIC) in Isfahan during 2012-2014. The attendees were recruited consecutively. Vaginal, rectal, saliva and urine samples were tested for CT using Real-time PCR. The demographic data were gathered by face to face interview. Results: Prevalence of Chlamydia infection was 20.2% (20/99). The number of people who had more than one sexual partner in the CT-positive group was significantly higher than CT-negative (P= 0.042). The percentage of women whose duration of intimate relationship lasted more than three years was higher in the Chlamydia-positive population compared to Chlamydia-negative (70% vs 35.4%, p=0.005). Furthermore, Chlamydia-negative and Chlamydia-positive FSWs differed from one another in the history of imprisonment (11.4 % in Chlamydia-negative vs 35% in Chlamydia-positive group, p=0.017). Conclusion: The prevalence of CT infection was high among FSWs. Our findings showed that prison experience, the number of sexual partners and duration of intimate relationship were statistically significant among those affected by chlamydia infection.