Because anal sex is a common practice for MSM and women, and anal STI are frequently present, rectal screening should be an essential part of an STI consultation. SRS is a feasible, valid, and acceptable alternative for MSM and women attending STI clinics, and hence should be considered for other settings as well.

IntroductionThe Amsterdam PrEP project is a prospective, open‐label demonstration study at a large sexually transmitted infection (STI) clinic. We examined the uptake of PrEP; the baseline characteristics of men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender persons initiating PrEP; their choices of daily versus event‐driven PrEP and the determinants of these choices.MethodsFrom August 2015 through May 2016, enrolment took place at the STI clinic of the Public Health Service of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. MSM or transgender persons were eligible if they had at least one risk factor for HIV infection within the preceding six months. Participants were offered a choice between daily or event‐driven use of tenofovir/emtricitabine. Baseline data were analysed using descriptive statistics and multivariable analysis was employed to determine variables associated with daily versus event‐driven PrEP.ResultsOnline applications were submitted by 870 persons, of whom 587 were invited for a screening visit. Of them, 415 were screened for eligibility and 376 initiated PrEP. One quarter (103/376, 27%) chose event‐driven PrEP. Prevalence of bacterial STI was 19.0% and mean condomless anal sex (CAS) episodes in the preceding three months were 11. In multivariable analysis, older age (≥45 vs. ≤34, aOR 2.1, 95% CI 1.2 to 3.9), being involved in a steady relationship (aOR 1.7, 95% CI 1.0 to 2.7), no other daily medication use (aOR 0.6, 95% CI 0.3 to 0.9), and fewer episodes of CAS (per log increase aOR 0.7, 95% CI 0.6 to 0.9) were determinants for choosing event‐driven PrEP.DiscussionPrEP programmes are becoming one of the more important intervention strategies with the goal of reducing incident HIV‐infection and we were unable to accommodate many of the persons applying for this study. Offering a choice of dosing regimen to PrEP users may enable further personalization of HIV prevention strategies and enhance up‐take, adherence and cost‐effectiveness.ConclusionsThe majority of participants preferred daily versus event‐driven use. Within this majority, a high number of CAS episodes before PrEP initiation was reported and we observed a high prevalence of STI. Determinants of choosing event‐driven PrEP were older age, fewer CAS episodes, no other daily medication use, and involved in a steady relationship.

The diagnosis of syphilis can be complicated when it is based on diverse clinical manifestations, dark-field microscopy, and serology. In the present study, therefore, we examined the additional clinical value of a Treponema pallidum real-time TaqMan PCR for the detection of primary and secondary syphilis. The additional value of the T. pallidum real-time PCR for the diagnosis of primary syphilis was evaluated by the use of three different algorithms: (i) a head-to-head comparison of the dark-field microscopy result and the T. pallidum real-time PCR result, (ii) comparison of the clinical diagnosis made in a sexually transmitted infection clinic (STI) (including by dark-field microscopy) and the T. pallidum real-time PCR result, and (iii) comparison of the clinical diagnosis made in a general practitioner's office (without dark-field microscopy) and the T. pallidum real-time PCR result. A fourth algorithm was used to determine the performance of the T. pallidum real-time PCR regarding the detection of secondary syphilis. From December 2006 to April 2008, 716 patients with suspected cases of primary syphilis and 133 patients with suspected cases of secondary syphilis were included in the study. A kappa value of 0.601 was found for the agreement between dark-field microscopy and the T. pallidum real-time PCR. Good agreement was found between the T. pallidum real-time PCR and both the diagnosis of the general practitioner (kappa ‫؍‬ 0.745) and the diagnosis of the STI clinic (kappa ‫؍‬ 0.769). The sensitivity with respect to the STI clinic diagnosis was 72.8%, the specificity was 95.5%, the positive predictive value was 89.2%, and the negative predictive value was 95.0%. The T. pallidum real-time PCR is a fast, efficient, and reliable test for the diagnosis of primary syphilis in an STI outpatient clinic and a general practitioner setting, but it has no added diagnostic value for the diagnosis of secondary syphilis.The etiologic agent of syphilis, Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum, causes a multistage sexually transmitted infection (STI). During the last decade, there has been an increase in the reported incidence of syphilis in industrialized countries, emphasizing the need for reliable diagnostics for syphilis.The slow generation time and the inability to survive and multiply outside the mammalian body make T. pallidum unsuitable for in vitro culturing (11). The reliable and fast diagnosis of syphilis and early treatment could improve public health. Until recently, the laboratory diagnosis of syphilis was based on dark-field microscopy and/or syphilis serology. Darkfield microscopy is mainly used for the diagnosis of primary syphilis. For optimal interpretation of the test result, dark-field microscopy requires the laboratory technician performing the microscopy to have a great deal of experience and expertise. In many settings in which patients with (ano)genital ulceration are seen, such as the office of a general practitioner (GP), dark-field microscopy is not available and a definite diagnosis of syphilis dep...

Women who tested positive for Chlamydia trachomatis infection after having been contact-traced by a chlamydia-positive partner were more likely to have CVM dominated by L. iners or by diverse anaerobic bacteria, than by L. crispatus.

Our data support phylodynamic findings that HCV incidence had already increased among HIV-infected MSM from the mid-1990s. However, the main expansion of the HCV epidemic started after 2002. Incidence estimates obtained from cohort studies may help identify changes in the spread of important infections earlier and should guide routine testing policies to minimize further disease burden.