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Faster chlamydia test developed

30/11/2007

A new chlamydia test has been developed that can tell people within half an hour if they have the sexually transmitted infection (STI), researchers claim.

It uses self-collected vaginal swabs, rather than cervical swabs, which are much easier to obtain and up to twice as accurate, according to Dr Helen Lee from Cambridge University and colleagues.

Chlamydia is the most common STI in England and if left untreated can result in complications such as pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy and infertility.

Up to 70 per cent of infected women do not show symptoms.

In trials the new chlamydia rapid test (CRT) detected the STI in more than four out of five infected women, even though most showed no symptoms.

This effectiveness is similar to screening programmes in the UK but at 30 minutes is much faster than the response time of a few weeks in the current methods.

Researchers behind the test say it could become a valuable addition to screening programmes already in place, as well as providing a crucial diagnostic test in the developing world.

"The speed of the CRTs means that we can provide a 'test and treat' strategy, offering immediate clinical care to the patient," said Dr Lee.

"This has the benefits of reducing the risk of complications and preventing onward transmission."

Penny Barber, chief executive of Brooks in Birmingham, a young people's sexual health clinic that participated in trials, commented: "The CRT is about more than speed of treatment for positive clients, vital though that is from a public health perspective.

"All clients, anxious about having chlamydia, benefit from the relief a rapid result gives. For clinics there is a strong business case for a method that cuts out the logistics and cost of transporting samples, sending results back and then contacting clients."

The test will be made available in 2008 by the company Diagnostics for the Real World and its developers hope to provide it at virtually cost price to public sections of the developing countries.

This will be subsidised by charging the market price in the developed world.