372. Prevalence of Urethral, Rectal, and Pharyngeal Gonorrhea and Chlamydia among Newly Diagnosed Filipino HIV Patients

Abstract

BackgroundThe Philippines has the fastest-growing HIV epidemic in the Asia-Pacific. Concurrent sexually-transmitted infections increase the risk of HIV transmission and complications. The prevalence of Neisseria gonorrheae (NG) and Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) infection among Filipino HIV patients is unknown and screening is not universal. A symptom-based approach likely underestimates the prevalence of NG and CT among men who have sex with men (MSM). We determined the rectal, pharyngeal, and urethral prevalence of gonorrhea and chlamydia infection in our patient population using nucleic acid testing (NAT).MethodsThis is a single-center, prospective cross-sectional study at Philippine General Hospital. Following ethical approval and informed consent, pharyngeal, rectal, and urine samples from newly-diagnosed, treatment-naïve HIV adult patients were tested using the Xpert® CT/NG assay (Cepheid, Sunnydale, CA). Patients with recent (≤21 days) antibiotic use with activity against NG or CT were excluded. Demographic and clinical data were also collected.Results46 subjects were enrolled. Mean age was 31 years (range 19–49), 83% (38/46) were male, 96% (44/46) were asymptomatic, and 92% (35/38) of the males were MSM. Median CD4 count was 225 cells/μL (range 0–1,335). The overall prevalence of CT/NG was 33% (15/46). Table 1 shows the prevalence of CT and NG by site. Four patients had both genital and rectal CT. More patients had rectal NG/CT compared with urethral and pharyngeal sites. No gonorrhea was found in the urine specimens; no chlamydia was found in the pharynx.ConclusionThe prevalence of CT and NG among newly diagnosed Filipino HIV patients at 33% is sufficiently high to warrant routine NAT screening. Urine testing alone will miss a significant number of cases in an MSM-predominant population. We recommend NAT screening of both urethral and rectal sites for newly-diagnosed Filipino HIV patients. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.