Advances in Diagnostics of Sexually Transmitted Infections

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are caused by a variety of pathogens, many of which have shared symptoms and all of which have shared transmission routes as implied by the terminology. This review focuses on detection of etiologic agents of clinical syndromes that manifest as urethral or vaginal discharge, dysuria, pelvic pain, and genital ulcer disease (GUD). Infectious causes of discharge syndromes include Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Trichomonas vaginalis, and Mycoplasma genitalium. Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a discharge-related syndrome typified by a shift in composition of the vaginal microbiome. This syndrome may or may not be the result of infection with specific organisms, but it is clearly related to sexual activity and therefore warrants discussion in this review. Vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) is caused by an overgrowth of Candida spp and, although not an STI, must be considered when attempting to determine the cause of discharge and is therefore also included. Genital lesions resulting from GUD are most frequently caused by