1988 Volume 79 Issue 3 Pages 487-494
As C. trachomatis has emerged as one of the major causative organisms of nongonococcal urethritis (NGU) and related infections, there has been an increasing need for refined diagnostic procedures. Since December 1984, we have survayed 281 male outpatients with and without urogenital infections (UGI). Chlamydial organisms were examined by the direct immunofluorescence antibody technique (DIF) using the MicroTrak and the isolation in cell cultures, and antibodies were assayed by means of the microplate immunofluorescence antibody technique (MFA) using L2/434/Bu as antigen.
The reuslts are summarized as follows:
1) The organisms were detected in 53 of 148 patienys with UGI (35.6%), 5 of 25 patients with gonococcal urethritis (GU) (20.0%), 43 of 90 patients with NGU (47.3%), 2 of 21 patients with prostatitis (9.5%) and 3 of 9 patients with epididymitis (33.3%) by DIF. The organisms were isolated from 49 out of 145 male patients with UGI (33.8%), 5 of 24 patients with GU (20.8%), 39 of 85 patients with NGU (45.9%), 4 of 24 patients with prostatitis (16.7%) and one of 9 patients with epididymitis (11.9%). The organisms were isolated from one of 32 patients without UGI. When C. trachomatis was isolated and/or specifically stained by DIF, we scored as antigen positive.
2) For the patients on the first visit, the coincidence ratio between the isolation and DIF was 88.7%, indicating a significant correlation between these two different procedures for the antigen detection (p<0.01).
3) In 68 patients with positive antigen, serum IgM titers were detected in 12 patients (17.6%), while serum IgG titers were found in 38 patients (55.9%).
The positive rates of serum IgG and IgM titers of C. trachomatis on the patients with urethritis were 52.2% and 15.5%, respectively. These results may indicate that the organisms invading urogenital tract are not to be enough antigenic stimulation for the antibody formation, consequently resulting in the poor humoral response.
