Enhancing gonorrhea surveillance in China by testing females in gynecology clinics: Lessons learned from a pilot survey

OBJECTIVES: China has a high burden of gonorrhea, but an imbalanced male-to-female (M/F) ratio of reported cases. Therefore, the prevalence of gonorrhea in China may be underestimated due to inadequate testing of potentially infected females. The objective of this study is to investigate the cause of this imbalanced M/F ratio and develop strategies to enhance gonorrhea surveillance, particularly among females. METHODS: The national center for STD control (NCSTDC) of China CDC collected data in Zhongshan city over the year 2018 from the National Notifiable Disease Report System (NNDRS) and the Hospital and Laboratory Information Systems (HIS and LIS) that obtains information from 24 hospitals. RESULTS: Analysis of 1,542 reported cases of gonorrhea and the case distribution among different hospitals showed that most of the female cases (80.31%) were reported by gynecological clinics. The M/F ratio of reported cases varied between different hospitals and was dependent on the intensity of testing of females by their gynecological clinics. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed a significant correlation between M/F ratios and the relative contribution of female gonorrhea testing, especially in gynecology clinics. Enhancing gonorrhea testing among females should be advocated to improve surveillance in China.