title: Prevalence of genital pathogens among female prostitutes in New York City and in Rotterdam.
abstract: The authors studied the prevalence of genital microorganisms among 300 female prostitutes in brothels in New York City and 60 female prostitutes attending a sexually transmitted diseases clinic in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Rates of isolation of Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Chlamydia trachomatis, Mycoplasma hominis, and Ureaplasma urealyticum in the two cities were 9.3% and 8.3%, 25.3% and 16.6%, 57.3% and 74.9%, and 73% and 79%, respectively. Trichomonas vaginalis was detected in 3.6% of New York prostitutes and in 16.6% of those in Rotterdam. Nonspecific vaginitis was found in 33% of prostitutes examined in New York. In New York, Asian prostitutes were more likely to be infected with C. trachomatis (33 of 102; 32.3%) than were prostitutes of other ethnic backgrounds (44 of 194; 21.5%; P less than .05.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002692:Chlamydia trachomatis / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005260:Female; D005836:Genitalia, Female / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D009174:Mycoplasma / Q000302:isolation & purification; D009344:Neisseria gonorrhoeae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D009426:Netherlands; D009519:New York City; D011477:Sex Work; D018139:Simplexvirus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014246:Trichomonas vaginalis / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014509:Ureaplasma / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014627:Vaginitis / Q000175:diagnosis