Chlamydia home sampling in the real world: a cross-sectional analysis
Rosalind Foster
A B * , Tobias Vickers A B , Heng Lu A and Anna McNulty A C
A Sydney Sexual Health Centre, GPO1614, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
B The Kirby Institute, Sexual Health Program, UNSW Medicine, Kensington, NSW, Australia.
C School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW Medicine, Kensington, NSW, Australia.
Sexual Health 19(5) 479-483 https://doi.org/10.1071/SH22054
Submitted: 31 March 2022 Accepted: 21 June 2022 Published: 21 July 2022
© 2022 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing
Abstract
Background: Retesting rates for chlamydia in Australia are low. Chlamydia home sampling has been shown to increase retesting rates. Sydney Sexual Health Centre introduced chlamydia home sampling in 2019. The aim of this study is to describe home sampling in a real world setting.
Methods: In this retrospective study, the total number of heterosexual males and non-sex-working females who tested positive for chlamydia at a urogenital site (1 November 2019 to 31 October 2020) were identified based on local diagnostic codes. Agreeing participants who were sent a home sampling SMS reminder at 2.5 months were included for further analysis. Descriptive statistics and attrition rates of the home sampling were calculated using frequencies and percentages. Bivariate analyses of the main covariates by each stage, assessing crude associations, were performed using chi-squared tests.
Results: A total of 444 people attending Sydney Sexual Health Centre were eligible for the chlamydia home sampling option, 25.9% agreed to be sent the home sampling SMS invitation, of which 53 (46.1%) replied and were mailed a home sampling kit, with 43.4% returning the kit; of these 3 (13.0%) were positive for chlamydia. The majority (91.3%) of tests were performed within 6 months of original diagnosis. Of those who initially agreed but then did not undertake home sampling, 22.6% subsequently tested in clinic at Sydney Sexual Health Centre. There were no associations between any of the variables measured and undertaking home sampling.
Conclusions: Home sampling process for chlamydia reinfection screening in heterosexual men and non-sex-working women had much lower uptake than seen in a previous trial with high attrition rates at each stage.
Keywords: Australasia, chlamydia, community health, environment, home-obtained specimen, home testing, postal specimen, preventive medicine and public health, re-infection, screening, self-sampling, sexually transmitted infections.
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