In an attempt to know the applicability of non-cultural detection technique for N. gonorrhoeae and C. trachomatis on pharyngeal and rectal swabs, the swabs taken from N. gonorrhoeaeand C. trachomatis-free subjects were tested by Gonozyme, Chlamydiazyme, Ideia Chlamydia, Gen-Probe and Gen Probe Pace 2. As N gonorrhoeae-and C. trachomatis-free subjects, the castrated males older than age 70, with known prostate cancer treated at least for 6 months with anti-androgens who were seronegative for C. trachomatis and had a history of Ofloxacin treatment in the last 3 months and whose pharyngeal and rectal swabs were negative for N. gonorrhoeae, were subjected for study.
The false negative rates were for N. gonorrhoeae from the pharynx by Gonozyme 57.7%, by Gen-Probe 0%, by Gen-Probe Pace 20%, from rectum by Gonozyme 0%, by Gen-Probe 0% by Gen-Probe Pace 20%, for C. trachomatis from pharynx by Chlamydiazyme 93.8%, by Ideia Chlamydia 8.3%, by Gen-Probe 0%, by Gen-Probe Pace 20%, from rectum by Chlamydiazyme 94.4%, by Ideia Chlamydia 70.9%, by Gen-Probe 20.0% and by Gen-Probe Pace 20%.
To investigate the incidence of pharyngeal and rectal infection by N. gonorrhoeae among the patients with gonococcal genital infection, as well as pharyngeal and rectal infection by C. trachomatis among the patients with chlamydial genital infection, pharyngeal and recal swabs obtained from the patients with genital infection by N gonorrhoeae or C. trachomatis were tested by Gen-Probe Pace 2. Positive rate for N. gonorrhoeae of pharyngeal swab was in males 29.4%, in female 33.3% and of rectal swab in males 0%, in females 46.7%. Positive rate for C. trachomatis of pharyngeal swab was in males 3.9%, in females 10.5% and of rectal swab in males 0%, in females 53.3%.
High infection rate of female rectum by both N. gonorrhoeae and C. trachomatis might suggest that rectal infection could be caused by direct contamination of cervical discharge. Difference of pharyngeal infection rates of both male and female between N. gonorrhoeae and C. trachomatis might suggest that pharyngeal infectibility of C. trachomatis would be lower than that of N. gonorrhoeae.