Journal article
Detection of neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates from tonsils and posterior oropharynx
M Bissessor, DM Whiley, DM Lee, AF Snow, CK Fairley, J Peel, CS Bradshaw, JS Hocking, MM Lahra, MY Chen
Journal of Clinical Microbiology | AMER SOC MICROBIOLOGY | Published : 2015
DOI: 10.1128/JCM.01647-15
Abstract
We examined the factors influencing gonorrhea detection at the pharynx. One hundred men infected with Neisseria gonorrhoeae were swabbed from the tonsils and posterior oropharynx. N. gonorrhoeae was reisolated from the tonsils and posterior oropharynx in 62% and 52%, respectively (P=0.041). Culture positivity was greater with higher gonococcal DNA loads at the tonsils (P=0.001) and oropharynx (P<0.001). N. gonorrhoeae can be cultured from the tonsils and posterior oropharynx with greater isolation rates where gonococcal loads are higher.
Grants
Funding Acknowledgements
We thank Jun Kit Sze and Afrizal for data extraction and the laboratory staff at the University of Melbourne Microbiology Diagnostic Unit for handling specimens and performing cultures and MIC determination. We also wish to thank staff at the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre that supported the study, including Htun Lin Aung who assisted with data analysis. Melanie Bissessor was supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council postgraduate scholarship (no. 1038734).