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Reproductive Tract Infections in Women

  • Chapter
Sex and Gender Differences in Infection and Treatments for Infectious Diseases

Abstract

Reproductive tract infections (RTIs) are of significant public health concern. The bulk of their long-term morbidity disproportionately affects women. Consequently, research and public health efforts have focused on trying to minimize the burden of these infections in women. In this chapter, we focus on two agents that cause RTIs: Neisseria gonorrhoeae, a curable bacterial infection, and herpes simplex virus (HSV), a viral pathogen for which no cure exists. We have chosen these pathogens to highlight intriguing differences in epidemiology, clinical manifestations, and immunological responses noted between men and women. We begin by summarizing what we know about these infections in women and any existing differences between the sexes. Potential mechanisms that may explain the sex-based differences observed for these and other RTIs are evaluated. Such mechanisms consist of both behavioral (gender) and biological (sex) factors. Consideration of the role of mucosal immune responses, sex hormones, and the vaginal microbiome in mediating sex-based differences are suggested.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, BioPark Building II, 801 West Baltimore Street, Room Number 627, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA

    Rebecca M. Brotman

  2. Division of Infectious Diseases, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, JHUBMC, 5200 Eastern Ave, MFL Center Tower #378, Baltimore, MD, 21224, USA

    Khalil G. Ghanem

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  1. Rebecca M. Brotman
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  2. Khalil G. Ghanem
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Correspondence to Khalil G. Ghanem .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    Sabra L. Klein

  2. Professor of Parasitology, Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy & Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    Craig W. Roberts

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Brotman, R.M., Ghanem, K.G. (2015). Reproductive Tract Infections in Women. In: Klein, S., Roberts, C. (eds) Sex and Gender Differences in Infection and Treatments for Infectious Diseases. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16438-0_11

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