Español | Other Languages
NOTE: A surveillance case definition is a set of uniform criteria used to define a disease for public health surveillance. Surveillance case definitions enable public health officials to classify and count cases consistently across reporting jurisdictions. Surveillance case definitions are not intended to be used by healthcare providers for making a clinical diagnosis or determining how to meet an individual patient’s health needs.

Clinical Description

Infection with L1, L2, or L3 serovars of Chlamydia trachomatis may result in a disease characterized by genital lesions, suppurative regional lymphadenopathy, or hemorrhagic proctitis. The infection is usually sexually transmitted.

Laboratory Criteria For Diagnosis

  • Isolation of C. trachomatis, serotype L1, L2, or L3, from clinical specimen, OR
  • Demonstration of inclusion bodies by immunofluorescence in leukocytes of an inguinal lymph node (bubo) aspirate, OR
  • Positive microimmunofluorescent serologic test for a lymphogranuloma venereum strain of C. trachomatis (in a clinically compatible case)

Case Classification

Probable

A clinically compatible case with one or more tender fluctuant inguinal lymph nodes or characteristic proctogenital lesions with supportive laboratory findings of a single C. trachomatis complement fixation (CF) titer of greater than 64

Confirmed

A case that is laboratory confirmed

Related Case Definition(s)