NEW Trichomonas test
Trichomonas vaginalis (TV) infection is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections in North America, and is associated with an increased risk of HIV acquisition and transmission in women. TV causes vaginitis in women; however, 10-50% of infected women are asymptomatic. Most infected men (up to 90%) are asymptomatic but may develop urethritis. Since symptoms and signs of TV infection are not specific, definitive diagnosis requires lab testing.
The routine method for diagnosis is wet-mount microscopy with a sensitivity of 60% compared to culture in women (may be less in asymptomatic women). Therefore a negative result does not rule out Trichomoniasis. There is not a clinically relevant test for males.
LifeLabs recently implemented the OSOM Trichomonas Rapid Test. It detects TV antigens and has a reported sensitivity of ~80% and specificity of 99%. The test can only be performed from vaginal swabs. For our own validation study, a total of 180 vaginal swabs with known positive or negative results were collected. The vaginal samples had either a request for Trichomonas testing or TV was seen in the gram stain. The OSOM test result was compared to the original culture or gram stain result. The OSOM test results correlated 100% with the culture method. There was no false positive or false negative results. This new test provides rapid turn-around-time (usually same day vs ≥ 48 hours for our current culture method).