Screening for Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis at entertainment venues among men who have sex with men.

<bold>Background: </bold>To assess the prevalence and increase awareness of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis infections among men who have sex with men, a screening program was conducted at three inner-city homosexual entertainment venues and one community function.<bold>Study Design: </bold>Each venue was accessed twice over a 3-month period between March and June 2000. First-catch urine specimens were collected for analysis by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and throat swabs were collected for culture and PCR.<bold>Results: </bold>A total of 202 men were tested during the 7 screening nights, including 16 who were tested more than once. From the 186 men tested for the first time, 184 urine specimens were collected, of which 8 (4.3%; 95% CI, 1.9-7.8%) were PCR-positive for C trachomatis and 1 (0.5%; 95% CI, 0-2.1%) was PCR-positive for N gonorrhoeae. Of the 161 throat swabs collected, none were positive for C trachomatis or N gonorrhoeae.<bold>Conclusions: </bold>C trachomatis is a potentially significant pathogen in this population of urban homosexual men. Screening programs such as these are valuable as health-promotion exercises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]