Sexually Transmitted Infections

Widespread screening for Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoea and other STIs, adds a significant burden to the health care budget, but is important for disease prevention and epidemiology. NAATs are now widely used, and have become the preferred tools for detecting and screening for STIs. This is largely due to their enhanced sensitivity and specificity over more traditional methods, and the ability to process non-invasive test samples such as urine samples or self-collected vaginal swabs. However, in order to provide accurate diagnostic results NAATs must be rigorously evaluated for specificity, reproducibility, analytic and clinical validity, and cost before they can be recommended for screening of general populations.