On December 9, 2021, NACCHO, the National Coalition of STD Directors (NCSD), and the National Association of State and Territorial AIDS Directors (NASTAD) hosted a webinar on a new point-of-care technology for testing of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and the impact of its use for health departments.
Historically, STI testing has required that samples be sent to a lab for testing while the patient awaits results and possible treatment. A fast diagnosis and appropriate treatment are essential in preventing the spread of STIs. A point-of-care test allows for faster diagnosis and eliminates the 4–7-day turnaround. A reliable, low-cost, point-of-care test which allows clinicians and healthcare workers to diagnose and provide accurate treatment in one visit could help reduce burden on the patient and help improve health outcomes including by helping to reduce the threat of antibiotic resistance from empirical treatment. By streamlining the process of providing accurate treatment and counseling at once, providers can save t ime and money, reduce patient anxiety, and minimize the loss of patients to follow-up care (treatment).
In August, Visby Medical received FDA clearance and a CLIA waiver for its point-of-care PCR test for the detection of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomonas with a vaginal swab. Results are available within 30 minutes and can be shared within a single patient visit. This is the first point-of-care test that has received this approval.
In this video, participants will:
Dr. Gary Schoolnik is Chief Medical Officer, Visby Medical. He is also Professor of Medicine (emeritus), Stanford Medical School, Attending Physician in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases at Stanford University Hospital and Associate Director of Stanford’s Institute for Immunology, Transplantation and Infection.
Dr. Schoolnik received his M.D. degree and infectious diseases subspecialty training at the University of Washington in Seattle, served as medical intern, resident and chief resident at Harvard’s Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and he was a research associate and associate physician at the Rockefeller University in Manhattan. While on the Stanford Medical School faculty he served as Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine. National service included his appointment to the Advisory Council of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the NIH and his role as chair of the NIH Trans-Institute Committee on the Human Microbiome and co-chair of the NIH Blue Ribbon Committee on Bioterrorism. International consultative activities include the Board of Scientific Counselors of Fudan University in Shanghai. He was founding editor of the journal Molecular Microbiology and Associate Editor of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
His academic research focuses on the molecular, genetic and genomic aspects of infectious agents and on the development of new drugs, vaccines and diagnostics. Gary has 6 issued patents.
Full lists of publications: visit https://profiles.stanford.edu/gary-schoolnik
A common sexually transmitted infection that may not produce symptoms, Chlamydia affects people of all ages, and is most common in young women.
A sexually transmitted bacterial infection that, if untreated, may cause infertility. Babies of infected mothers can be infected during childbirth.
Among the most common sexually transmitted infections, Trichomoniasis causes a foul-smelling vaginal discharge, genital itching, and painful urination in women.
