Accuracy of Curable Sexually Transmitted Infections and Genital Mycoplasmas Screening by Multiplex Real-Time PCR Using a Self-Collected Veil among Adult Women in Sub-Saharan Africa

Figure 1

Flow diagram of the GYNAUTO-STI study. The GYNAUTO-STI study consisted in community-based recruitment of at least 248 adult women recruited from the community and further referred to the gynecologic clinic “La Renaissance Plus”, N’Djamena, Chad. The participants meeting the inclusion criteria were subjected to physical examination, tested for 3 chronic viral infections endemic in Chad (HIV, HBV, and HCV) by capillary-based immunochromatographic rapid test, cared when needed, and filled in the face-to-face sociodemographic questionnaire. Afterwards, the participants were trained for self-sampling collection using the V-Veil-Up Gyn Collection Device (V-Veil-Up Pharma Ltd.) and randomly submitted to the sampling procedure with Method 1 (clinician-based collection of cervical secretions by swab, as gold standard) followed by the Method 2 (self-collection by veil) or inversely. Collected samples were processed for molecular detection of genital sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and commensal Mycoplasmas.