Full Text Available

Note: Clicking the button above will open the full text document at the original institutional repository in a new window.

The association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms

Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2018.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Other Authors: Kock, Martha Magdalena
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2018
Subjects:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1867613607962869760
access_status_str Open Access
author2 Kock, Martha Magdalena
author_browse Kock, Martha Magdalena
author_facet Kock, Martha Magdalena
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv © 2018 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria.
description Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2018.
format Thesis
id oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/65849
institution University of Pretoria (South Africa)
language English
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:38:50.869Z
license_str Other — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
publishDate 2018
publishDateRange 2018
publishDateSort 2018
publisher University of Pretoria
publisherStr University of Pretoria
record_format dspace
source_str UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
spelling oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/65849 The association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms Kock, Martha Magdalena shanered72@gmail.com Ehlers, M.M. (Marthie Magdaleen) Redelinghuys, Mathys J. UCTD Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2018. Bacterial vaginosis (BV) and genital mycoplasmas are infections of the reproductive tract that play important roles in maternal and foetal health. Genital mycoplasmas include Mycoplasma genitalium, M. hominis, Ureaplasma parvum and U. urealyticum. Infection may increase a woman’s susceptibility to infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Bacterial vaginosis associated bacteria may form biofilms that are responsible for antimicrobial resistance and about 30% of affected women will relapse within three months of treatment. Genital mycoplasmas are prone to develop point mutations, which are responsible for increased antimicrobial resistance. Infections with these bacteria become prominent during pregnancy as infection may lead to infertility and foetal death. The purpose of the study was to determine the association between genital mycoplasmas and BV in pregnant women. Pregnant women attending the antenatal and Maternal and Foetal Unit (MAFU) clinics of a tertiary academic hospital in Pretoria, South Africa were included in the study. Self-collected vaginal swab specimens were obtained from consenting women older than 18 years of age. With the aid of microscopy, the Nugent scoring system was used to diagnose BV. Genital mycoplasmas were cultured on A2 agar and were diagnosed and speciated with a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (mPCR) assay. In addition, genital mycoplasmas were diagnosed and the antimicrobial susceptibility profiles determined with the Mycofast Revolution assay. A quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was employed to quantify the BV associated bacteria Atopobium vaginae and Gardnerella vaginalis. The prevalence of BV in this study was found to be 17.7% in 220 recruited pregnant women. Threshold concentrations between 106 to 107 copies/reaction of A. vaginae and G. vaginalis were found to be the best predictors of BV. Genital mycoplasmas were poorly recovered from A2 agar media, which had a contamination rate of 54.9%. An mPCR assay revealed that genital mycoplasmas were prevalent in 2.3% to 71.4% of specimens with U. parvum being the most prevalent species. The resistance of Ureaplasma species to tetracycline and erythromycin was 73% and 80%, respectively. Minor resistance to the fluoroquinolones, levofloxacin and moxifloxacin was recorded. This study found that only the genital mycoplasmas, namely M. hominis and U. parvum, were significantly associated with BV, while M. hominis was also significantly isolated from HIV positive women. This study found that there is an association between BV and genital mycoplasmas. The high prevalence of BV and genital mycoplasmas suggests that current management and/or intervention strategies are insufficient. Bacterial vaginosis associated bacteria can form a polymicrobial biofilm, which confer protection against antimicrobial agents and host immune responses. These biofilms are present on genital sites like the endometrium, which is located close to the amniotic membranes, posing health risks for the pregnancy. Future research must focus on the study of in vitro BV biofilm models and effective treatment strategies to minimise antimicrobial resistance. In the meantime, low-cost point-of-care (POC) tests that can accurately diagnose RTIs are needed to prevent excessive and unnecessary administration of antimicrobial agents and improve maternal and foetal health in the South African health care system. Medical Microbiology MSc Unrestricted 2018-07-25T06:53:34Z 2018-07-25T06:53:34Z 2014/04/25 2014 Dissertation Redelinghuys, MJ 2014, The association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms, MSc Dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd <http://hdl.handle.net/2263/65849> E14/4/524 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/65849 en © 2018 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria
spellingShingle UCTD
The association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms
title The association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms
title_full The association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms
title_fullStr The association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms
title_full_unstemmed The association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms
title_short The association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms
title_sort association between genital mycoplasmas and bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women with or without genital symptoms
topic UCTD
url http://hdl.handle.net/2263/65849