Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 8, 2026

Using Fluorescent Proteins to Visualize and Quantitate Chlamydia Vacuole Growth Dynamics in Living Cells
Published on: October 13, 2015
Endocervical Gram stain smears and their usefulness in the diagnosis of Chlamydia trachomatis
L Myziuk1, B Romanowski, M Brown
1University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. lmyziuk@comcept.ab.ca
Objective:
To evaluate the usefulness of endocervical Gram stain smears in the diagnosis of Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae in a female population attending a STD clinic.
Methods:
494 females attending a STD clinic and undergoing a speculum examination had endocervical specimens submitted for C trachomatis culture, direct fluorescent antibody testing (DFA), and N gonorrhoeae culture. Endocervical smears were also collected for Gram stain. The number of polymorphonuclear leucocytes (PMN) per high power field (HPF), presence of bacteria, yeast, red blood cells, and clue cells were recorded. Clinical signs of cervicitis were also documented.
Results:
N gonorrhoeae was isolated from one subject who was co-infected with C trachomatis and no further analysis was done regarding N gonorrhoeae. Analysis was performed on 220 participants. The prevalence of C trachomatis infection was 13%. Of the Gram smears collected, 55% were inadequate owing to the presence of vaginal contamination. There were an equal number of C trachomatis isolates in patients with < or = 10 PMN/HPF (48%) and > 10 PMN/HPF (52%). Endocervical mucopus and erythema were statistically significant for the presence of C trachomatis (p < 0.001 and 0.02 respectively). The presence of any signs of cervicitis-that is, mucopus, friability, erythema, and ectropion together with > 10 PMN/HPF was statistically significant for the presence of C trachomatis.
Conclusion:
The use of endocervical Gram smear results together with clinical information can be used to identify high risk women for C trachomatis infection.
Related Concept Videos
Trichomoniasis
Sputum Studies I: Gram Stain, cytology, and Acid-fast smear and culture
Gram Stain
The Gram Stain is an integral part of sputum studies. It involves the staining of sputum, which permits...
Sexually Transmitted Infections
Special Staining Techniques
Differential Staining Technique
Fixation and Sectioning
The simplest type of preparation is the wet mount, in which the specimen is placed in a drop of liquid on the slide. A liquid specimen can be directly deposited on the slide using a dropper. Solid specimens, such as skin scraping, can be placed on the slide before adding a drop of liquid to prepare the wet mount. Sometimes the liquid is simply water, but stains are often added...

