Prevalence of sexually transmitted infections among pregnant migrant and refugee women: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis
10 affiliations
- 1Hospital Universitario Departamental de Nariño, Pasto, Nariño, Colombia
- 2Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia, Campus Pasto, Colombia
- 3Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nicaragua, Managua, Nicaragua
- 4University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States of America
- 5Central and University Library of Lucerne, Frohburgstrasse, Lucerne, Switzerland
- 6Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine, University of Lucerne, Frohburgstrasse, Lucerne, Switzerland
- 7Instituto de Investigaciones One Health, Universidad Tecnológica Centroamericana (UNITEC), Tegucigalpa, Honduras
- 8Health and Bioethics, Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
- 9Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Científica del Sur, Lima, Peru
- 10Grupo de Investigación Biomedicina, Faculty of Medicine, Fundación Universitaria Autónoma de las Américas-Institución Universitaria Visión de las Américas, Risaralda, Colombia
Abstract
Sexually transmitted infections during pregnancy are associated with important maternal, fetal, and neonatal complications, including vertical transmission, congenital infection, stillbirth, preterm birth, and increased maternal morbidity. Pregnant migrant and refugee women may face additional risks because displacement, legal precarity, socioeconomic vulnerability, and limited access to antenatal care can delay screening and treatment. However, the burden of sexually transmitted infections in this population remains poorly characterized, and available estimates are fragmented across geographic regions, migration categories, diagnostic methods, and healthcare settings. Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to estimate infection-specific prevalence of sexually transmitted infections among pregnant migrant, refugee, asylum-seeking, undocumented, internally displaced, or otherwise displaced women worldwide and to characterize variation by geographic region, migration status, and other clinically relevant factors. Methods: This protocol is registered in PROSPERO (CRD420251085346). We will include peer-reviewed primary cross-sectional studies and cohort studies with a defined prevalence denominator, while excluding case reports, case series, case-control studies, grey literature and reports without a valid denominator. MEDLINE via Ovid, Embase.com, Scopus, Web of Science, the Virtual Health Library, and the WHO Global Index Medicus will be searched without language, date, or geographic restrictions and citation searches. Two reviewers will independently screen records and extract data using a prespecified form that will be pilot-tested before formal extraction. Risk of bias will be assessed with the Joanna Briggs Institute prevalence checklist. When at least three comparable independent estimates are available, random-effects meta-analysis will be conducted separately for each infection. A participant-level composite of any STI will be analyzed only when explicitly reported using unique individuals and will not be derived by summing infection-specific cases. Certainty will be evaluated using a GRADE-informed approach adapted for prevalence estimates.
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BibTeX
@article{lopezdelgado2026prevalence,
title = {{Prevalence of sexually transmitted infections among pregnant migrant and refugee women: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis}},
author = {Darío S. López-Delgado and Carlos A. Narváez and Gloria L. Chapués-Andrade and Rosa Angela Ruiz Ibarra and Danilo Alejandro Solarte Ordoñez and Andrés Salas-Zambrano and Noah L. Schroeder and Magda Gamba and Lysien I. Zambrano and Oscar H. Franco and Alfonso J. Rodríguez-Morales},
journal = {PLOS One},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0359424},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0359424},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Prevalence of sexually transmitted infections among pregnant migrant and refugee women: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis
AU - Darío S. López-Delgado
AU - Carlos A. Narváez
AU - Gloria L. Chapués-Andrade
AU - Rosa Angela Ruiz Ibarra
AU - Danilo Alejandro Solarte Ordoñez
AU - Andrés Salas-Zambrano
AU - Noah L. Schroeder
AU - Magda Gamba
AU - Lysien I. Zambrano
AU - Oscar H. Franco
AU - Alfonso J. Rodríguez-Morales
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/05
JO - PLOS One
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0359424
UR - https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0359424
AB - Sexually transmitted infections during pregnancy are associated with important maternal, fetal, and neonatal complications, including vertical transmission, congenital infection, stillbirth, preterm birth, and increased maternal morbidity. Pregnant migrant and refugee women may face additional risks because displacement, legal precarity, socioeconomic vulnerability, and limited access to antenatal care can delay screening and treatment. However, the burden of sexually transmitted infections in this population remains poorly characterized, and available estimates are fragmented across geographic regions, migration categories, diagnostic methods, and healthcare settings. Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to estimate infection-specific prevalence of sexually transmitted infections among pregnant migrant, refugee, asylum-seeking, undocumented, internally displaced, or otherwise displaced women worldwide and to characterize variation by geographic region, migration status, and other clinically relevant factors. Methods: This protocol is registered in PROSPERO (CRD420251085346). We will include peer-reviewed primary cross-sectional studies and cohort studies with a defined prevalence denominator, while excluding case reports, case series, case-control studies, grey literature and reports without a valid denominator. MEDLINE via Ovid, Embase.com, Scopus, Web of Science, the Virtual Health Library, and the WHO Global Index Medicus will be searched without language, date, or geographic restrictions and citation searches. Two reviewers will independently screen records and extract data using a prespecified form that will be pilot-tested before formal extraction. Risk of bias will be assessed with the Joanna Briggs Institute prevalence checklist. When at least three comparable independent estimates are available, random-effects meta-analysis will be conducted separately for each infection. A participant-level composite of any STI will be analyzed only when explicitly reported using unique individuals and will not be derived by summing infection-specific cases. Certainty will be evaluated using a GRADE-informed approach adapted for prevalence estimates.
SN - 1932-6203
ER -