This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Bruisten, S. M. Articles by van Doornum, G. J. J. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Bruisten, S. M. Articles by van Doornum, G. J. J. Pubmed/NCBI databases Medline Plus Health Information Herpes Simplex Sexually Transmitted Diseases

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, February 2001, p. 601-605, Vol. 39, No. 2
0095-1137/01/$04.00+0   DOI: 10.1128/JCM.39.2.601-605.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Diagnosing Genital Ulcer Disease in a Clinic for Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Amsterdam, The Netherlands

S. M. Bruisten,^1,* I. Cairo,² H. Fennema,² A. Pijl,¹ M. Buimer,¹ P. G. H. Peerbooms,¹ E. Van Dyck,³ A. Meijer,⁴ J. M. Ossewaarde,⁴ and G. J. J. van Doornum^1,

GG&GD, Regional Laboratory of Public Health, Nieuwe Achtergracht 100, 1018 WT Amsterdam,¹ GG&GD, Clinic for Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Groenburgwal, Amsterdam,² and RIVM, LIO, 3720 BA Bilthoven,⁴ The Netherlands, and Institute of Tropical Medicine, Department of Microbiology, Antwerp, Belgium³

Received 20 July 2000/Returned for modification 26 September 2000/Accepted 27 November 2000

The most common etiologic agents of genital ulcer disease (GUD) are herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), HSV-2, Treponema pallidum, and Haemophilus ducreyi. In an outpatient clinic for sexually transmitted diseases in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, specimens from 372 patients with GUD were collected from February to November 1996. Sera were collected at the time of the symptoms and, for most patients, also during follow-up visits. Swabs in viral transport medium were used for HSV culture and for detection of DNA. The most prevalent pathogen found was HSV-2, which was detected by culture in 35% of the patients and by PCR in 48% of the patients. Also, HSV-1 infection was more often detected by PCR (7.8%) than by culture (5.6%). Evidence for an active infection with T. pallidum was found in 1.9% of the patients, using serological tests. A multiplex PCR for simultaneous T. pallidum and H. ducreyi DNA detection was positive for T. pallidum in 3.3% of the samples and for H. ducreyi in only 0.9% (3 out of 368) of the samples. The sensitivity of the PCR was superior to that of culture for HSV detection and to that of serology for T. pallidum detection. Specific H. ducreyi immunoglobulin G antibodies were detected in sera of 5.2% of the patients, with no concordance between serology and PCR. In 37% of the cases, none of the tested microorganisms was detected. Performance of PCR in addition to conventional techniques significantly improved the diagnosis of GUD.

---

^* Corresponding author. Mailing address: GG&GD, Regional Public Health Laboratory, Nieuwe Achtergracht 100, 1018 WT Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Phone: 31-20-555.5376. Fax: 31-20-555.5533. E-mail: sbruisten{at}gggd.amsterdam.nl.

Present address: Academic Hospital Rotterdam, Department of Virology, Dr. Molewaterplein 40, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

---

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, February 2001, p. 601-605, Vol. 39, No. 2
0095-1137/01/$04.00+0   DOI: 10.1128/JCM.39.2.601-605.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Gayet-Ageron, A, Ninet, B, Toutous-Trellu, L, Lautenschlager, S, Furrer, H, Piguet, V, Schrenzel, J, Hirschel, B (2009). Assessment of a real-time PCR test to diagnose syphilis from diverse biological samples. Sex. Transm. Infect. 85: 264-269 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Martin, I. E., Tsang, R. S. W., Sutherland, K., Tilley, P., Read, R., Anderson, B., Roy, C., Singh, A. E. (2009). Molecular Characterization of Syphilis in Patients in Canada: Azithromycin Resistance and Detection of Treponema pallidum DNA in Whole-Blood Samples versus Ulcerative Swabs. J. Clin. Microbiol. 47: 1668-1673 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Leslie, D. E., Azzato, F., Karapanagiotidis, T., Leydon, J., Fyfe, J. (2007). Development of a Real-Time PCR Assay To Detect Treponema pallidum in Clinical Specimens and Assessment of the Assay's Performance by Comparison with Serological Testing. J. Clin. Microbiol. 45: 93-96 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Pannekoek, Y., Spaargaren, J., Langerak, A. A. J., Merks, J., Morre, S. A., van der Ende, A. (2005). Interrelationship between Polymorphisms of incA, Fusogenic Properties of Chlamydia trachomatis Strains, and Clinical Manifestations in Patients in The Netherlands. J. Clin. Microbiol. 43: 2441-2443 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Nieuwenhuis, R F, Ossewaarde, J M, van der Meijden, W I, Neumann, H A M (2003). Unusual presentation of early lymphogranuloma venereum in an HIV-1 infected patient: effective treatment with 1 g azithromycin. Sex. Transm. Infect. 79: 453-455 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Lai, W, Chen, C Y, Morse, S A, Htun, Y., Fehler, H G, Liu, H, Ballard, R C (2003). Increasing relative prevalence of HSV-2 infection among men with genital ulcers from a mining community in South Africa. Sex. Transm. Infect. 79: 202-207 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• van Doornum, G. J. J., Guldemeester, J., Osterhaus, A. D. M. E., Niesters, H. G. M. (2003). Diagnosing Herpesvirus Infections by Real-Time Amplification and Rapid Culture. J. Clin. Microbiol. 41: 576-580 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Ikoma, M., Liljeqvist, J.-A., Groen, J., Glazenburg, K. L., The, T. H., Welling-Wester, S. (2002). Use of a Fragment of Glycoprotein G-2 Produced in the Baculovirus Expression System for Detecting Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2-Specific Antibodies. J. Clin. Microbiol. 40: 2526-2532 [Abstract] [Full Text]