Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) and Neisseria gonorrheae (GC) are presented together, not because of their similarities in disease presentation, but because of the current trend in screening samples for both simultaneously. Historically, these organisms were identified using very different laboratory methods: CT by tissue culture and GC by growth in specialized bacterial medium. However, over the past decade a revolutionary change has taken place in the approach used to detect these two sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In many instances, molecular testing, either nucleic acid hybridization or nucleic acid amplification, has replaced culture and immunoassays.