Diagnosis of genital Chlamydia trachomatis infections in asymptomatic males by testing urine by PCR

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (EIA) (MikroTrak; Syva) was compared with PCR (Amplicor; Roche) for detection of Chlamydia trachomatis in first-void urine (FVU) from 184 men attending a skin and venereal disease clinic. The prevalence of C. trachomatis in the population studied was 18.5%. Discrepant results between Syva EIA and Roche PCR were retested by using major outer membrane protein primer-based PCR. After retesting, the sensitivity, the specificity, and the positive and negative predictive values for the Syva EIA were 85.3, 100, 100, and 77.5%, respectively, and those for the Roche PCR 100, 100, 100, and 100%, respectively. It was concluded that PCR provides a highly sensitive and specific noninvasive screening method for genital chlamydial infection in asymptomatic men.