Empiric treatment of gonorrhea and chlamydia in the ED

A retrospective study was conducted on female patients who were screened for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhea. The purpose of the study was to determine if any factors predict empiric therapy at the index visit. Of 911 patients enrolled in the study, 100 were found to have positive DNA screens and 54 were given empiric therapy. A logistic regression was used to test the ability of age, ethnicity, DNA probe result and provider type (physician or midlevel provider), to predict empiric treatment. DNA probe result and provider type were the only 2 factors that were found to predict empiric therapy. A subsequent analysis using a Cochran-Mantel-Hanszel test to control for DNA probe result revealed that the provider type remained the only variable that predicted empiric treatment.