Serologic Evidence of Chlamydial and Mycoplasmal Pharyngitis in Adults

In a study of 763 adult patients we found serologic evidence of infection (a fourfold increase in antibodies) with Chlamydia trachomatis in 20.5 percent of the patients and with Mycoplasma pneumoniae in 10.6 percent, but with group A streptococcus (by culture) in only 9.1 percent. Pharyngitis, the most common problem for which patients seek medical care in the United States, may be caused by nonviral, potentially treatable organisms more often than had been suspected.