Table 5. Patients testing positive on Treponema pallidum PCR at mucosal screening sites and lesion sites in retrospective study of patients who visited the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, during November 2018–March 2020.
| Sites tested by T. pallidum PCR | No. tested | No. (%) positive by T. pallidum PCR |
|---|---|---|
| Mucosal sites* | 776 | 24 (3.0) |
| Oral cavity† | 405 | 12 (3.0) |
| No oral symptoms | 339 | 8 (2.4) |
| Oral symptoms present | 66 | 4 (6.1) |
| Anal swab | 352 | 9 (2.6) |
| No anal symptoms | 291 | 4 (1.4) |
| Anal symptoms present | 61 | 5 (8.2) |
| Vaginal swab | 19 | 3 (13.6) |
| No vaginal symptoms | 18 | 3 (16.7) |
| Vaginal symptoms present |
1 |
0 |
| Lesion sites‡ | 50 | 8 (16.0) |
| Penile swab | 23 | 6 (26.0) |
| Other sites (perianal: 13) | 27 | 2§ (7.4) |
*Oral cavity, anus, and vagina. †Specimens tested from oral cavity were oral swab, oral rinse, or both. Oral swab was positive in 11/352 (3%) samples. Oral rinse was positive in 8/397 (2%) samples. ‡Penis, perianal, labia, mouth ulcer, palms, soles, pubic, right groin, scrotum, and tongue. §Positive PCR from specimens tested at tongue and scrotum.