title: No association of anti-Chlamydia trachomatis antibodies and severity of cervical neoplasia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore whether the presence of Chlamydia trachomatis antibodies is associated with the severity of neoplastic lesions in women with cervical dyskaryosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a cross sectional study in two groups of women referred for an abnormal Papanicolaou smear (group A: 296, group B: 331 women) blood samples were analysed for antichlamydial antibodies by enzyme immunoassay. Cervical neoplasia was graded histologically.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In group A no association was found between increasing grade of CIN and the presence of antichlamydial antibodies. The proportion (93%) of women with antichlamydial antibodies was higher in 14 women with (micro)invasive carcinoma than in women with CIN (35%). As the high prevalence of antichlamydial antibodies in women with cervical carcinoma is not consistent with prevalences reported in recent literature, we analysed a second group of women in which indeed the high prevalence was not confirmed
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that the presence of circulating antichlamydial antibodies is not associated with the severity of neoplastic lesions and it seems unlikely that C trachomatis has a role in the progression of cervical neoplasia.
authors: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Academic Medical Centre, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Reesink-Peters
authors: J M
authors: JM
authors: Ossewaarde
authors: A G
authors: AG
authors: Van Der Zee
authors: W G
authors: WG
authors: Quint
authors: M P
authors: MP
authors: Burger
authors: A H
authors: AH
authors: Adriaanse
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D002692:Chlamydia trachomatis / Q000276:immunology*; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*; D002578:Uterine Cervical Dysplasia / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial