A FURTHER LOOK AT INFECTION AT THE TIME OF THERAPEUTIC-ABORTION

Microbiological investigations and clinical follow-up were performed on 516 patients undergoing first-trimester termination of pregnancy, over a 2-year period. Chlamydia trachomatis was isolated by pre-operative microbiological screening in 6.7% of patients, gonococcus in 0.4% and Trichomonas vaginalis in 2%. Candida spp and Gardnerella vaginalis were isolated from 16% and 28% of the women, respectively. Patients who had positive cervical chlamydial isolation were significantly younger (< 22 years) than those who did not. Doctor's clinical diagnosis of genital tract infection was found to be associated with a positive screening result but not with the likelihood of postabortal pelvic infection. Among the 175 patients followed up in the outpatient clinic, 4 of the 15 patients with a positive result for N. gonorrhoeae, C. trachomatis and/or T. vaginalis developed postoperative pelvic infection, which is significantly more than the group who did not harbour any of these three organisms ( 9 114). © 1990.