Self-testing to beat chlamydia infection

Health researchers at the University of Otago, Wellington suggest that encouraging women to self-test can be used to control the increasingly common sexually transmitted infection Chlamydia. This follows research recently published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

The study shows that given a choice, New Zealand European and Maori women at high risk of sexually transmitted infections (STI) would rather provide a self-taken vaginal swab than a sample taken by a doctor. 300 women under the age of 25 took part in the study and 66% opted to take a self-test for sexually transmitted infections.

It found that 15.7% of pregnant women tested positive for Chlamydia. When calculated for ethnicity, infection rates were 8.9% for European NZ women, 20.4% for Maori, 17.9% for Pacific and 33.3% for Asian, and 16.7% for other European women.

"In light of the rising rates of Chlamydia among women and men under 25 years, these results indicate that offering a self-test may be a practical way of increasing testing, particularly amongst women who're not showing any obvious symptoms," says University of Otago researcher, Dr Beverley Lawton, Director of the Women's Health Research Centre.

Dr Lawton says the bacteria Chlamydia is a serious and growing problem in both sexes under the age of 25. It can have long term and serious consequences, particularly for women, in terms of infertility, pelvic infections, and pelvic pain. Chlamydia can also affect the foetus she says, and is not being adequately detected at the present time.

"We're still not taking Chlamydia seriously enough and there's general public ignorance of its consequences and the fact that increasingly both men and women are contracting the infection, and transmitting it, through intercourse."

Other than the ease of a simple and cheap self-test, Dr Lawton says there are a number of other diagnostic advantages in this method of detection. GPs should be encouraging their younger sexually active patients to self-test at least once a year, or to have a test done by their doctor if they prefer. The reason is that in 70-80% of women and 50% of men there are no obvious symptoms of this disease.

"After all the cure is relatively easy, but the consequences of not doing anything are often serious. Just a couple of tablets get rid of the infection in most cases."