Quick Review Cards for Medical Laboratory Science

Chlamydia andChlamydophila Clinical Microbiology Review 215

ORGANISM PATHOGENICITY LABORATORY DIAGNOSIS OTHER

Chlamydia trachomatis

Chlamydophila (Chlamydia)
pneumoniae

Chlamydophila (Chlamydia)
psittaci

Obligate intracellular parasite.

Need epithelial cells for culture.

Wooden swabs are toxic. Cell

culture was gold standard; NAAT

now preferred for genital speci-

mens. Commercial systems avail-

able for simultaneous detection

of N. gonorrhoeae.

Obligate intracellular parasite.

Risk factor for Guillain-Barré

syndrome. May be risk factor for

cardiovascular disease.

Obligate intracellular parasite.

Spread by birds.

Most common sexually trans-

mitted bacterial infection in

U.S. Trachoma, lymphogranu-

loma venereum, nongonococcal

urethritis, pelvic inflammatory

disease. Pneumonia & conjunc-

tivitis in newborns.

3rd most common cause of

acute RTI.

Psittacosis (“parrot fever”).

Rare in U.S.

Giemsa stain, direct fluorescent

antibody stain, cell culture, rapid

antigen assay (EIA), nucleic acid

amplification tests (NAATs), DNA

probes, serological tests for

antibodies

Serological tests are method of

choice.

Serological tests.