The Natural History of Rectal Gonococcal and Chlamydial Infections: The ExGen Study

The duration of rectal gonococcal and chlamydial infection remains unknown. This basic epidemiologic parameter is needed to understand transmission dynamics.

We conducted a prospective, longitudinal, observational cohort study of 140 men who have sex with men (MSM) at risk of gonorrhea and chlamydia acquisition. For 48 weeks, enrolled men collected rectal swabs (Aptima multi-test kit) at home and responded to an electronic survey about sexual behavior and health conditions weekly. Swabs remained untested until participants completed the study. We used Kaplan-Meier estimates to determine the median duration of infection, censoring infections for treatment, loss to follow-up, and end-of-study. We used log-rank test to compare duration of infection by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status, history of infection with gonorrhea or chlamydia, and coinfection with the other pathogen.

140 enrolled MSM contributed 70.5 person-years of follow-up. Eighteen men had 20 incident rectal gonococcal infections, which persisted for 2-23 weeks; 30% were censored for treatment. The estimated median duration of rectal gonorrhea was 9 weeks (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3-12 weeks). Twenty-four men experienced 32 rectal chlamydial infections, persisting between 2 and 42 weeks; 60% were censored. The estimated duration of rectal chlamydia was 13 weeks (95% CI: 6 weeks-undefined). There were no differences in the duration of rectal gonorrhea or chlamydia by HIV status, history of chlamydia/gonorrhea, or coinfection.

On average, rectal gonorrhea and chlamydial infections last 2-3 months, although some infections persisted for 6-11 months. Further understanding into predictors of persistence is needed.