Screening school teenagers for Chlamydia trachomatis antibodies in Congo.

Chlamydia trachomatis genital infection is the most common sexually transmi tted disease. C. trachomatis can persist for a long time and may result in serious sequelae, such as salpingitis leading to subsequent ectopic pregnan cy, infertility, or chronic pelvic pain. Most studies are performed among w omen seen at clinics dealing with antenatal care, family planning, sexually transmitted diseases, or gynecology. The purpose of this study was to dete rmine the prevalence of C. trachomatis in teenagers in Congo. We studied th e prevalence of C. trachomatis antibodies in 295 school teenagers, between 13 and 19 years of age (154 females and 141 males) and compared it with tha t of 190 children between 6 and 12 years of age. IgG, IgM, and IgA were stu died by micro-immunofluorescence, using three strains: LB1/L2 (C. trachomat is), IOL-207 (C. pneumoniae), and Loth (C. psittaci). C. trachomatis IgG an tibodies were detected in patients 15 years of age or more. The prevalence was 6.1%. It was more predominant in females (10.4%) than in males (1.4%). IgA were detected in six cases (five females, one male) associated with IgG . No IgM was found. In comparison the prevalence of C. pneumoniae antibodie s was high (67.8%). This data suggests that unexposed teenagers may be conc erned by C. trachomatis infection which can be screened and treated. The ma jor goal of Chlamydia trachomatis control is the prevention of salpingitis and their sequelae. We therefore conclude that Chlamydia screening should b e considered in sexually active teenagers in Congo. (C) 1999 Elsevier Paris .