Brief Encounters
HOME- OR CLINIC-SAMPLING FOR STIS?
Given the opportunity, would women be more likely to take specimens for sexually-transmitted-infection (STI) testing in the comfort and privacy of their own home, or go to a clinic? Jones and colleagues examined this question in a randomised trial involving 626 women in Gugulethu, South Africa. The difference between the groups was rather modest; 47% of those with the home kit returned a complete set of specimens, compared with 42% of those who went to the clinic (an additional 14% of mailed specimen sets were not received or were incomplete). Effective initiatives for detecting and treating STIs in this population are certainly needed, as 22% of women had chlamydia, 10% had trichomonas and 8% had gonorrhoea. See p 552
INTERNATIONAL INTERNET INTIMACY
Two surveys, from China and Peru, show the …
