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Sex Transm Infect 2005;81:323-325 doi:10.1136/sti.2004.012799
  • Chlamydia

Condom effectiveness for prevention of Chlamydia trachomatis infection

  1. L M Niccolai1,2,
  2. A Rowhani-Rahbar1,
  3. H Jenkins3,
  4. S Green4,
  5. D W Dunne4
  1. 1Yale University School of Medicine, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA
  2. 2Yale University Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS, New Haven, CT, USA
  3. 3Connecticut Department of Public Health, STD Control Program, Hartford, CT, USA
  4. 4New Haven Health Department STD Clinic, New Haven, CT, USA
  1. Correspondence to:
 Linda M Niccolai
 PhD, Yale University Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, 60 College Street, PO Box 208034 New Haven, CT 06520-8034, USA; linda.niccolaiyale.edu
  • Accepted 1 November 2004

Abstract

Background/objectives: A growing body of evidence is increasingly demonstrating the effectiveness of condoms for sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention. The purpose of the present analysis was to provide a disease specific estimate for the effectiveness of condoms in preventing Chlamydia trachomatis infection while controlling for known exposure to infection.

Methods: Condom effectiveness for C trachomatis was estimated using a medical record database from a public sexually transmitted disease clinic (n = 1455). Clients were classified as having known exposure to C trachomatis if they presented to the clinic as a contact to an infected partner.

Results: Among clients with known exposure, 13.3% of consistent condom users were diagnosed with C trachomatis infection compared to 34.4% of inconsistent condom users (adjusted odds ratio = 0.10; 95% CI: 0.01 to 0.83). Among clients with unknown exposure, there was no observed protective effect of condoms.

Conclusions: This study provides further evidence that condoms are effective in preventing C trachomatis infection by reporting a disease specific estimate and restricting analyses to individuals with known exposure.

Footnotes

  • Competing interests: none declared.

  • The Human Investigations Committees at Yale University School of Medicine (New Haven, CT, USA), and Connecticut Department of Public Health (Hartford, CT, USA) approved access to and analyses of these data.

Responses to this article

  • Re “Condom effectiveness for prevention of Chlamydia trachomatis infection"
    • Lee Warner,
    • Maurizio Macaluso, Daniel Newman, Mary Kamb, C. Kevin Malotte, Jonathan Zenilman, Harland Austin, David Kleinbaum, John Douglas
    Sex Transm Infect published online September 21, 2005

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