GENITAL ULCERS ASSOCIATED WITH HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS-RELATED IMMUNOSUPPRESSION IN FEMALE SEX WORKERS IN ABIDJAN, IVORY-COAST

A cross-sectional study among female sex workers in Abidjan was conduc ted to study the association between sexually transmitted diseases and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and HIV-related immunosu ppression. Among 1209 women tested for HIV, 962 (80%) were seropositiv e. HIV infection was independently associated with a longer duration o f sex work, a lower price for intercourse, being an immigrant, and hav ing a positive Treponema pallidum hemagglutination test (P < .05). Gen ital ulcers (25% vs. 5%), genital warts (14% vs. 4%), Neisseria gonorr hoeae (32% vs. 16%), Trichomonas vaginalis (27% vs. 17%), and syphilis (27% vs. 17%) were more frequent (P < .05) in HIV-infected than -unin fected women. Among HIV-infected women, the proportions with a genital ulcer were 17%, 25%, and 36% for those with >28%, 14%-28%, and <14% C D4 cells, respectively (P < .001). This study suggests that genital ul cers are an opportunistic disease in female sex workers in Abidjan.