ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The frequency of Chlamydia trachomatis in women with mucopurulent discharge was determined by a cell culture technique and a transcription-mediated amplification (TMA) assay in endocervical swab specimens. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Endocervical swab specimens were obtained from 116 symptomatic patients with genitourinary complaints or abdominal pain. All of the women were married, with an age range of between 19 and 44 (median 29) years. The cell culture assay was used in all specimens. For 75 specimens the TMA assay was also performed. RESULTS: Positive cell culture test results were obtained in 6 (5.2%) patients. Among 75 specimens, 2 were positive by both TMA and culture assays, while 1 specimen was positive only by the culture assay. Of those positive for C. trachomatis, 5 were in the 19- to 25-year age group, and 1 was in the >25-year age group. All of the patients with positive results were of low socioeconomic status. CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed a relatively low rate of C. trachomatis infections in symptomatic married women in Turkey. A commercial TMA assay failed to identify all positive patients, in contrast to a 'gold standard' culture assay used in patients having such infections.
Subject(s)
Chlamydia trachomatis/isolation & purification , Transcription, Genetic , Vaginal Smears , Adult , Cells, Cultured , Chlamydia trachomatis/genetics , DNA, Bacterial/genetics , Female , Humans , TurkeyABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to investigate the DNA of Chlamydia trachomatis by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in the first-void urine samples of patients with mucopurulent genital discharge and to compare the results with the urethral/endocervical swab culture method. First-void urine samples from 56 patients (46 female, 14 male) and urethral swab samples from 14 male patients were tested by PCR. Additionally, shell-vial culture method was performed for the urethral/endocervical swab samples which were collected from 46 female and 14 male patients. Four (2 females, 2 males) of the patients (7.1%) showed positive results by both of the methods. In five (8.9%) of the urine samples, internal control tests were found negative, indicating the presence of amplification inhibitors, and the culture results of these patients were also negative. Since the PCR method (Cobas Amplicor CT, Roche Diagnostic Systems, NJ, USA) which was used in the study included internal control programme to identify inhibitors in urine, the sensitivity was improved. As a result, the perfect (100%) correlation between culture and PCR methods, lead to the conclusion that PCR is a rapid and reliable method for the detection of C. trachomatis in urine samples, however more detailed studies are necessary related to the sensitivity and specificity of PCR method.
