Urine Based Chlamydia Screening at Illinois Pregnancy Testing Centers

Background: Guidelines recommend chlamydia screening for females less than 26 years of age. Women seeking pregnancy testing services at community based clinics have had unprotected sex and are at risk of acquiring chlamydial infections. 

Methods: During 2012, the Illinois Department of Public Health, Sexually Transmitted Diseases Program recruited ten community based pregnancy testing centers to perform chlamydia testing on clients seeking pregnancy testing services.

Results: From January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2012, 521 females were tested for chlamydia, with 77 (14.8%) testing positive.  Of the 521 females tested, 449 (86.2%) were less than 26 years old.  Of the 449 females (less than 26 years of age) tested 75 (16.7%) were positive for chlamydia.  Pregnancy testing center staff also encouraged females infected with chlamydia to refer male sex partners for chlamydia testing.  During the same time period, 131 male clients were tested with 42 (32.1%) testing positive for chlamydia.

Conclusions: During 2012, chlamydia positivity rates in traditional STD clinics were 10.9 % for female STD clinic clients and 14.9% for male clients.  Providing chlamydia screening services in nontraditional settings, such as pregnancy testing centers, identified higher rates of chlamydia infections in females and male sex partners of females infected with chlamydia.