ArticleThe western journal of emergency medicine2025
Evaluation of an Emergency Department Sexually Transmitted Infection Empiric Treatment and Linkage-to-care Program.
Article in The western journal of emergency medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionRates of sexually transmitted infections (STI), remain high in Hillsborough County, FL. As the emergency department (ED) is frequently used for STI diagnosis and treatment, a local hospital ED implemented a linkage-to-care program using a callback system to ensure that patients with chlamydia, gonorrhea, and/or syphilis received treatment. Our primary aim in this paper was to evaluate implementation of an ED-based STI treatment program by describing empiric, follow-up, and overall treatment rates in STI-positive patients by disease and sex. A secondary aim was to evaluate reasons for undertreatment during the acute-care encounter.
methodsWe conducted this quality assurance project, including a retrospective chart review of electronic health records from 2019-2022, at an urban ED in Hillsborough County, Florida. During this period, we reviewed all records reflecting positive results for chlamydia, gonorrhea and/or syphilis to determine whether empiric treatment was administered in the ED or the patient required coordination for follow-up care. Patients who received empiric treatment or successful follow-up treatment were classified as treated, while those who did not receive successful follow-up treatment were classified as untreated.
resultsA total of 1,170 patients were diagnosed with an STI at an urban, quaternary-care hospital in the county. Of these, 689 (58.9%) had chlamydia, 324 (27.7%) had gonorrhea, 133 (11.4%) had dual gonorrhea-chlamydia, and 24 (2.1%) had syphilis. Rates of STI empiric, follow-up, and overall treatment were 47.1%, 86.1%, and 92.6%, respectively. Empiric and overall treatment rates were highest for male patients (72.3% male, 33.4% female) and patients presenting with gonorrhea (67.6% gonorrhea, 63.9% chlamydia). Follow-up treatment rates were highest for female patients (87.1%) and patients presenting with gonorrhea (87.6%).
conclusionOur findings emphasize both the successes and opportunities for improvement of a linkage-to-care protocol to provide treatment access for patients in the ED who test positive for sexually transmitted infections. Given the significant strain on the public health infrastructure in the United States and on our local Department of Health, ED-based linkage programs fill an important gap in healthcare delivery. Going forward, improving overall treatment rates in females and patients with chlamydia or syphilis is warranted.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.