Frecuencia de solicitud y prevalencia de reactividad de la prueba no treponémica (VDRL) en pacientes con aborto en el hospital local del norte de Bucaramanga, Colombia

Introduction: Adherence to the recommendations for syphilis screening in pregnant women is critical for congenital syphilis prevention. The objective of this study was to estimate the frequency of nontreponemal test orders and prevalence of test reactivity in women with miscarriage. Materials and methods: Cross-sectional study based on the registry of patients coming to the obstetrical emergency service at Hospital Local del Norte, Bucaramanga, between January 1^st and December 31^st, 2011, diagnosed with miscarriage. The prevalence of nontreponemal testing (VDRL) orders as well as of reactive results was assessed in these patients. Results: During the study period, 233 women were identified to have a confirmed miscarriage. The mean age was 24.2 ± 7.3 and the mean gestational age was 9.1 ± 3.3 weeks. Evidence for nontreponemal test orders was documented in 135 patients (57.9 %; CI 95 %: 51.6-64.3); of them, 5 (3.7 %; CI 95 %: 0.5-6.9) had reactive results: 1 with 1:2 titres; 3 with 1:4 titres and 1 with 1:32 titres. Conclusion: Despite existing recommendations, the prevalence of nontreponemal test orders in patients with miscarriage is low. This points to the need to create awareness among the staff about the importance of following closely the protocol for the care of pregnant patients.