Mycoplasma genitalium infections in asymptomatic men and men with urethritis attending a sexually transmitted diseases clinic in New Orleans

We report the results of a study of Mycoplasma genitalium (detected with a modified polymerase chain reaction [PCR] assay) in men with urethritis and in asymptomatic control subjects at a sexually transmitted diseases clinic in New Orleans. Data for 97 men with urethritis and 184 asymptomatic men were available for analysis. M. genitalium infection rates in symptomatic and asymptomatic men who were negative for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae were 25% and 7%, respectively (P = .006). M. genitalium coinfection rates among men with chlamydial and gonococcal urethritis were 35% and 14%, respectively. Men with M. genitalium urethritis resembled those with C. trachomatis in that both groups were younger and more likely to experience milder urethral symptoms. Among men with urethritis, the sensitivities of PCR of urine and swab specimens for the detection of M. genitalium were 87% and 91%, respectively. M. genitalium is associated with nongonococcal urethritis in this population.