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High incidences of congenital syphilis have been reported in areas along the Pacific coast of Colombia. In this retrospective study, conducted during 2018-2022 at a public hospital in Buenaventura, Colombia, we analyzed data from 3,378 pregnant women. The opportunity to prevent congenital syphilis was missed in 53.1% of mothers because of the lack of syphilis screening. Characteristics of higher maternal social vulnerability and late access to prenatal care decreased the probability of having >1 syphilis screening test, thereby increasing the probability of having newborns with congenital syphilis. In addition, the opportunity to prevent congenital syphilis was missed in 41.5% of patients with syphilis because of the lack of treatment, which also increased the probability of having newborns with congenital syphilis. We demonstrate the urgent need to improve screening and treatment capabilities for maternal syphilis, particularly among pregnant women who are more socially vulnerable.

Introduction. The success rates in the treatment of tuberculosis are suboptimal. Objective. To identify associated factors with the lack of success of antituberculosis treatment in patients with a tuberculosis treatment history. Materials and methods. We performed a retrospective, analytical, observational, and cohort study of patients reentering the Mycobacterium program in Cali, Colombia. We included patients over 15 years old with pulmonary tuberculosis between 2015 and 2019 and a history of tuberculosis treatment. Patients with drug-resistant tuberculosis were excluded. Results. A total of 605 patients with a treatment history were included, 60% due to unfinished treatment and 40% due to relapse. Compared to patients reentering due to relapse (ORa=2.34, CI=1.62-3.38), the independent variables associated with treatment failure at discharge were homelessness (ORa=2.45, CI=1.54-3.89), substance dependence (ORa=1.95, CI=1.24-3.05), tuberculosis/HIV coinfection (ORa=1.69, CI=1.00-2.86), diabetes (ORa=1.89, CI=1.29-2.77), and unfinished previous tuberculosis treatment due to follow-up loss, abandonment, or other causes. Programmatic variables favoring treatment success were voluntary HIV testing counseling (p<0.001) and HIV testing (p<0.001). Conclusion. Homelessness, substance dependence, tuberculosis/HIV coinfection, diabetes, and incomplete previous treatment due to loss to follow-up, abandonment, or treatment failure hindered the success of antituberculosis. These characteristics should be identified and addressed during the initial care of patients reentering treatment for tuberculosis.