Home sampling versus conventional swab sampling for screening of Chlamydia trachomatis in women: a cluster-randomized 1-year follow-up study.
We compared the efficacy of a screening program for urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infections based on home sampling with that of a screening program based on conventional swab sampling performed at a physician's office. Female subjects, comprising students at 17 high schools in the county of Aarhus, Denmark, were divided into a study group (tested by home sampling) and a control group (tested in a physician's office). We assessed the number of new infections and the number of subjects who reported being treated for pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) at 1 year of follow-up; 443 (51.1%) of 867 women in the intervention group and 487 (58.5%) of 833 women in the control group were available for follow-up. Thirteen (2.9%) and 32 (6.6%) new infections were identified in the intervention group and the control group, respectively (Wilcoxon exact value, P=.026). Nine (2.1%) women in the intervention group and 20 (4.2%) in the control group reported being treated for PID (P=.045), indicating that a screening strategy involving home sampling is associated with a lower prevalence of C. trachomatis and a lower proportion of reported cases of PID.
Ostergaard
L
L
Department of Infectious Diseases, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark. larsostergaard@hotmail.com
Andersen
B
B
Møller
J K
JK
Olesen
F
F
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001431:Bacteriological Techniques; D002690:Chlamydia Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D002692:Chlamydia trachomatis / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D003718:Denmark / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D000292:Pelvic Inflammatory Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D016353:Self-Examination