Seroepidemiology of Rubella in Women Under 25 Years Old Attending Medical Centers in Ahvaz, Iran in 2013.

Tuesday, 17th of May 2016

Jundishapur J Microbiol. 2015 Dec 26;8(12):e27896. doi: 10.5812/jjm.27896. eCollection 2015.

Seroepidemiology of Rubella in Women Under 25 Years Old Attending Medical Centers in Ahvaz Iran in 2013.

Ghafourian M¹ Shakunia A¹ Alavi SM² Kooti W³ Shakerinejad G⁴ Serajian A⁴ Chinipardaz Z⁵.

Author information

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Rubella is a mild viral infection affecting women of reproductive age and the fetus in early pregnancy leading to miscarriage stillbirth and Congenital Rubella Syndrome.

OBJECTIVES:

The present study aimed to assess serum level of anti-rubella antibodies in women younger than 25 years attending medical centers in Ahvaz city.

PATIENTS AND METHODS:

This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 760 women younger than 25 years attending medical centers in Ahvaz. A sample of 3 mL of venous blood was taken from each woman and ELISA method was used to assess anti-rubella IgG levels. Antibody level more than 11 IU/mL was considered safe. Data was analyzed by SPSS software using Chi-square ANOVA and Pearson Correlation tests.

RESULTS:

Of total samples 683 women (88.9%) had immunity against rubella 80 (10.4%) no immunity and 5 (0.7%) intermediate levels of antibody. Immunity to rubella increased significantly with aging (P = 0.001) and a significant association was found between age and antibody titer (P = 0.001 r = 0.261).

CONCLUSIONS:

More than 95% of 15 to 25 year-old women (main reproductive age in Iran) are within acceptable immunity range. Level of immunity to rubella in women of reproductive age in this region appears satisfactory.