Transmission is from direct mucosal contact with infected mucosa mainly following sexual contact. Infection may also occur from an infected mother to child during labour.
Gonococcal infections may sometimes occur in conjunction with other sexually transmitted infections such as chlamydia. Diagnosis using NAAT (nucleic acid amplification technique, e.g. PCR, polymerase chain reaction) is the current diagnostic gold standard.
Symptoms depend on the site of infection and include dysuria (discomfort on urination), vaginal or penile discharge, testicular or pelvic pain. Pharyngeal or rectal infections and endocervical infections in females are often asymptomatic. If left untreated there is a high risk of complications including spread to other sites and complications such as pelvic inflammatory disease and epididymo-orchitis. The incubation period is usually 2 to 5 days but infection cannot be ruled out in individuals who test within two weeks of sexual contact with an infected partner so repeat testing may be required in this situation. Diagnosis of gonorrhoea is made using culture or Nucleic acid amplification tests (NAAT’s). NAAT’s are rapid and show a high sensitivity. Culture plays an important role in facilitating antibiotic testing to ensure infection will respond to treatment. A test of cure is also recommended 2 weeks post completion of treatment.
Information on the management of gonococcal infections please refer to National guidelines such as the most recent BASHH guidelines which can be viewed here or the 2020 European guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of gonorrhoea in adults.
Endocervical, vaginal and male urethral Aptima collection swab specimens OR female and male Aptima urine specimens, with a final volume between the black fill lines of a urine specimen transport tube.
The test for Neisseria gonorrhoeae (GC) offered by Enfer Medical is a combined Neisseria gonorrhoeae (GC) and Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) molecular assay, used for screening, followed by confirmation using pathogen specific assays. These assays are target amplification nucleic acid probe tests that utilizes target capture for the in vitro qualitative detection of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) from Neisseria gonorrhoeae (GC) and/or Chlamydia trachomatis (CT). This test is CE-IVD certified.
For clients using the Enfer Medical Client Portal, the Enfer Medical Patient Request Form (PRF) will be generated when you have completed your “Test Request” within the portal linked below.
Please note that samples suspected of containing high risk pathogens such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis should be clearly identified on the form and packed separately from other samples.
Results are available next working day.
This assay is available seven days a week.
The packaging/preparation of samples for delivery to the laboratory are required to be in adherence to all national regulations for the safe transport of biological materials. HSE guidance can be reviewed HERE.
There are specific packaging instructions and labelling requirements requiring triple packaging including:
Further information on the packaging/preparation of samples for delivery to the laboratory is contained within the Enfer Medical Laboratory User Manual which clients are provided with.
Samples must be tested within 30 days of collection (if collected in an Aptima collection device) and stored at 2-30°C prior to testing.
In addition to the packaging of samples, the transport/delivery of clinical samples to the laboratory is required to be in adherence to all national regulations for the safe transport of biological materials. Enfer Medical provides a fully compliant logistics service, aligned with clients’ testing requirements.
Prompt transport of specimens:
To ensure prompt testing of samples and release of results within the published test turnaround times, samples should arrive to the laboratory by 18:00. Test turnaround time is measured from receipt of the sample at the laboratory until the time the authorised results are reported to users.
In rare cases specimens may not be suitable for testing on arrival to the laboratory. In that case the sample will be rejected at the receipt stage and the service user will be notified immediately and an explanation as to why the sample could not be processed will be provided. Reasons why samples cannot be processed include but are not limited to:
Please refer to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre for the Case Definitions for Notifiable Diseases:
Following receipt at the Laboratory, results should be available on the next working day and will be reported to the referring clinician via the Enfer Medical Client Portal or in a format agreed with clients.
Established clients can login to the portal using the link above.
