Stay in school? Results of a sexually transmitted diseases screening program in San Francisco high schools-2007

Abstract

Objectives: To provide chlamydia and gonorrhea screening and treatment to adolescents presumed to be at high risk, school screening was conducted among the 11th and 12th graders in San Francisco.

Study design: Two schools in neighborhoods with high chlamydia and gonorrhea rates and student populations > or = 15% black were chosen. Students viewed a 10-minute presentation and received test kits. Students decided in a private bathroom stall whether to test. All students were encouraged to return a test kit (whether they returned a urine specimen).

Results: Of 967 eligible students, 853 (88%) were in attendance. Of these, 21 (2%) declined to participate and 537 (63%) returned a specimen for testing. Students who tested were predominately heterosexual (93%) and nonwhite (99%). No students tested positive for gonorrhea; 7 (1.3%) tested positive for chlamydia. Positivity was 2.2% (5 of 227) for female students and 0.6% (2 of 310) for male students. Positivity by race/ethnicity was 5.4% (4 of 74) for blacks, 2.0% (2 of 98) for Hispanics, 0.3% (1 of 342) for Asian/Pacific Islanders, and 0% (0 of 4) for whites. The highest positivity was among black female students: 9.3% (4 of 43). Not including planning and follow-up, each case identified used 63 staff hours.

Conclusions: Despite high participation among students attending school in high morbidity neighborhoods, few infections were identified. This is likely because students have low rates of sexual activity and do not necessarily attend neighborhood schools. Screening used substantial resources. Sexually transmitted disease control programs considering school screening should consider local epidemiology and whether schools have substantial proportions of students likely at high risk for sexually transmitted diseases.