• Christian J P A Hoebe, Christiaan W Rademaker, Elfi E H G Brouwers, Henriëtte L G ter Waarbeek, and Jan E A M van Bergen.
• Department of Infectious Diseases, South Limburg Public Health Service, Heerlen, The Netherlands. hoebec@ggdozl.nl
• Sex Transm Dis. 2006 Aug 1;33(8):491-5.

ObjectivesPublic health efforts are needed to encourage young women to get tested for Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) and Neisseria gonorrhoeae (GC).GoalTo assess the acceptability and feasibility of 2 noninvasive diagnostic approaches.Study DesignParticipants of this cross-sectional survey were 413 young women (age 16-35) who underwent STD testing by self-taken vaginal swab (SVS) and a first-catch urine sample (FCU) by nucleic acid amplification test (BDProbTec) and filled out a questionnaire.ResultsCT and GC were diagnosed in 10.9% (45/413) and 1.5% (6/413). Eleven percent of the participants who never previously had an STD examination (68%) tested STD positive. SVS and FCU were almost uniformly reported as easy to perform and preferred above gynecologic examination.ConclusionsUsing SVS combined with FCU can be an important enhancing tool in public health approaches. Acceptability among potential patients is high, enabling the noninvasive detection of STDs that would otherwise remain undetected and untreated.

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