Screening for Chlamydia is acceptable and feasible during Cervical Screening in General Practice

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Gynecology
• Infectious Diseases

Background:

• Rising incidence of Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) and Neisseria gonorrhoeae (NG) in Ireland.
• CT and NG infections often remain undiagnosed, potentially leading to infertility and other complications.
• Current cervical cancer screening protocols do not routinely include CT/NG testing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility and acceptability of offering CT/NG screening concurrently with cervical smear tests.
• To determine the diagnostic yield of integrated CT/NG screening.
• To evaluate patient perceptions regarding STI screening during cervical screening.

Main Methods:

• Prospective screening for CT/NG offered to women aged 25-40 attending four general practices as part of Cervical Check.
• Retrospective review of prior smear tests to establish baseline CT/NG testing rates (10/138, 7%).
• Patient consent obtained for integrated screening (236/236, 93% consent rate).

Main Results:

• High patient consent rate (93%) for integrated CT/NG screening.
• Detection rate for Chlamydia trachomatis was 2.4% (6/236); no Neisseria gonorrhoeae cases were detected.
• Positive patient feedback and a significant proportion (18%) mistakenly believed STI screening was already standard.

Conclusions:

• Integrating CT/NG screening into routine cervical cancer screening is a feasible and acceptable strategy.
• This approach has a notable diagnostic yield for Chlamydia trachomatis.
• Patient education is needed, as many assume STI screening is already part of the smear test.