In this study we examine the attainability and usefulness of opportunistic screening for Chlamydia trachomatis infection based on self-assessed risk, among university students in Belgium.
Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was filled out by students (n = 243, 77.8% female, 22.2% male), who were asked to assess their own risk, to decide if their participation was useful, and to collect a first-void urine sample. Specimens were refrigerated and delivered to the laboratory on the same day. Screening for C. trachomatis DNA was performed by PCR. A Positive result was confirmed by another amplification assay.
Results: Two hundred forty three students took part in the study. One hundred thirteen participants did not meet the inclusion criteria. Ages varied from 18 to 39 years, with a mean age of 21.49 years. The overall prevalence of C. trachomatis infection was 2.9%. The prevalence of C. trachomatis infection in the group of students who met the inclusion criteria was 5.4%. Having a new partner in the past six months and having had more than one partner in the last year were the most frequent reported risk factors in male and female participants.
Conclusions: Screening students is a useful and feasible strategy to diagnose asymptomatic chlamydial infection. However assessing their own risk of infection seemed difficult for students. The overscreening of youngsters not at risk and the limited participation of males should get extra attention.