PREVALENCE OF GENITAL CHLAMYDIA AND MYCOPLASMA-INFECTION IN COUPLES ATTENDING A MALE-INFERTILITY CLINIC

To investigate the prevalence of genital mycoplasma (Ureaplasma urealy ticum and Mycoplasma hominis) and Chlamydia trachomatis infections in infertile and fertile couples, 135 infertile couples from a male infer tility clinic and 88 fertile couples from a prenatal care clinic were randomly screened. Semen, urethral and cervical smears were cultured f or genital mycoplasma and chlamydia. Antichlamydia IgA, IgG and IgM an tibodies were tested in blood and semen. Although the overall prevalen ce of Ureaplasma urealyticum was higher than that of Mycoplasma homini s, the prevalence of Mycoplasma hominis was significantly higher in th e infertile men and women. The prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis, po sitive culture was higher in infertile couples, but this difference wa s not significant. The prevalence of serum-specific IgG was significan tly higher in infertile than in fertile women (11.9 vs 3.4%, p < 0.05) . Specific semen IgA was significantly higher in infertile than in fer tile men (8.9 vs 1.1%, p < 0.015). A low rate of concordance between p artners was found in Mycoplasma and Chlamydia culture, and in the same patient between seminal IgA and urethral culture. In conclusion it is necessary to check both culture and serology findings in both partner s.