Sexually transmitted infections after bereavement - a population-based cohort study.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Loss of a loved one has consistently been associated with various health risks. Little is however known about its relation to sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

METHODS:

We conducted a population-based cohort study during 1987-2012 using the Swedish Multi-Generation Register, including 3,002,209 women aged 10-44 years. Bereavement was defined as death of a child, parent, sibling or spouse (N = 979,579, 33 %). STIs were defined as hospital visits with an STI as main or secondary diagnosis. Poisson regression and negative binomial regression were used to estimate incidence rate ratios (IRRs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) of STIs, comparing incidence rates of women who had experienced loss to those who had not.

RESULTS:

Bereaved women were at significantly higher risk of nearly all STIs studied. The relative risk of any STI was highest during the first year after loss (IRR: 1.45, 95 % CI: 1.27-1.65) and predominantly among women with subsequent onset of psychiatric disorders after bereavement (IRR: 2.61, 95 % CI: 2.00-3.34). Notably, a consistent excess risk, persisting for over five years, was observed for acute salpingitis (IRR: 1.28, 95 % CI: 1.13-1.44), a severe complication of bacterial STIs.

CONCLUSION:

These data suggest that women who have experienced bereavement are at increased risk of STIs.

• Authors: Emily Bond, Donghao Lu, Eva Herweijer, Karin Sundström, Unnur Valdimarsdóttir, Katja Fall, Lisen Arnheim-Dahlström, Pär Sparén, Fang Fang
• Journal: BMC infectious diseases (BMC Infect Dis) Vol. 16 Issue 1 Pg. 419 (08 15 2016) ISSN: 1471-2334 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 27528204 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Topics

• Acute Disease
• Adolescent
• Adult
• Bereavement
• Child
• Cohort Studies
• Female
• Follow-Up Studies
• Humans
• Incidence
• Mental Disorders (diagnosis, etiology)
• Registries
• Risk
• Salpingitis (diagnosis)
• Sexually Transmitted Diseases (diagnosis, epidemiology)
• Sweden (epidemiology)
• Young Adult