Perspective of a new diagnostic for human trichomonosis

Trichomonas vaginalis PREVALENCE AND RISK FACTORS FOR WOMEN IN SOUTHERN BRAZIL

“…Although the use of a fresh sample examination can be considered a limiting factor of this study, mainly because of its low sensitivity, it is commonly used due to its suitability to the physical and economic resources availability for routine diagnostic in the public sector, especially in Units Health of developing countries. The diagnosis of trichomoniasis performed by the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) or by culture methods have a good sensitivity and specificity, however, they are laborious and present higher costs, therefore limiting their use in laboratory routines, in the context of the Unified Health System in Brazil 6 . It is noteworthy that the prevalence estimates for T. vaginalis made available by the World Health Organization (170 to 190 million cases worldwide every year) are based mainly on results achieved with the analysis of fresh samples 1 .…”

“…In public health services, diagnosis of vaginal infections is usually based only on the presence of signs and symptoms. This type of evaluation can lead to the misdiagnosis of trichomoniasis, as this infection can be confused with other STDs 6 , 7 . Hence, laboratory investigation is important for the diagnosis of trichomoniasis, to ensure the appropriate treatment and the infection control.…”

“…It is highly specific 8 , 9 and allows the observation of T. vaginalis motility. The gold standard for the diagnosis is the culture method, but it is often inaccessible to health professionals and requires some laboratory conditions and expertise that are incompatible with the reality of most public laboratories in developing countries 6 . Therefore, although the fresh wet examination presents limitation in terms of sensitivity, it is used due to its compatibility with the physical and financial resources of the public sector in Brazil.…”

Difficult-to-Manage Vaginitis

“…In Brazil, scientists are developing a new diagnostic test for human trichomoniasis using FLUTAX, a fluorescent toxoid that stains the microtubule structure in living trophozoites of T. vaginalis in urine and vaginal discharge. 32 …”

Frecuencia De Tricomonas Vaginalis Detectadas Mediante Papanicolaou en Cuatro Servicios De Salud, 1997-2002

“…En el se informa una frecuencia de observación de tricomonas que varía entre 1,4 y 15% dependiendo de la población estudiada (8)(9)(10). El rendimiento de esta técnica es bajo, con una sensibilidad de 35 a 85%, y una especificidad de 78 a 100% (8)(9)(10)(11). Sin embargo, debido a su uso masivo permite realizar el diagnóstico de trichomonosis en un elevado número de mujeres, obteniéndose así información acerca de la epidemiología de esta infección.…”