Comparison of Culture and PCR Methods in the Detection of Neisseria  gonorrhoeae in Patients Suspected of Gonorrhea

Bahareh  Sheikh Eslami; Mohammad Hesam  Aslani; Haniyeh  Bashi Zadeh  Fakhar; Fatemeh  Rezaei; Shaghyegh  Rangraz

doi:10.18502/jmb.v13i3.19519

Bahareh Sheikh Eslami Islamic Azad University, Chalus Branch, Department of medical science, Chalous, Iran.
Mohammad Hesam Aslani Department of Cell and Molecular Sciences, TeMS.C, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
Haniyeh Bashi Zadeh Fakhar Department of Human Genetics, Science and Research Branch, Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Fatemeh Rezaei Department of Laboratory Science, Chalous Branch, Islamic Azad University, Chalous, Iran
Shaghyegh Rangraz Islamic Azad University, Chalus Branch, Department of medical science, Chalous, Iran.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/jmb.v13i3.19519

Keywords: Culture, Detection, Gonorrhea, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, PCR.

Abstract

Background: This study compares the effectiveness of culture and PCR methods in detecting Neisseria gonorrhoeae , a Gram-negative bacterium causing gonorrhea, which can lead to serious health complications, especially in women, and highlights the advantages of nucleic acid amplification tests over traditional culture-based diagnosis.

Methods: This study involved 70 individuals suspected of gonorrhea who referred to Baqiyatallah Hospital in Tehran between September and February 2022, with ethical approval and informed consent obtained from all participants. Two swab samples were collected from each individual—one for culture and one for molecular testing—and stored appropriately for microbiological and genomic analysis.

Results: This study examined 70 women suspected of having gonorrhea, with a mean age of 32.32 ± 8.58 years, and found a prevalence of 30% by vaginal culture and 28.57% by PCR testing. Using PCR as the gold standard, the sensitivity and specificity of culture for diagnosing gonorrhea were determined to be 45% and 76%, respectively.

Conclusion: Of course, the differences could be due to the size of the studied populations, but the important point is the high accuracy and sensitivity of the PCR test in identifying Neisseria gonorrhoeae, which has been mentioned in most studies.