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Point-by-Point Progress: Gonorrhea Point of Care Tests

ABSTRACT Introduction Point-of-care (POC) tests for Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Ng) are urgently needed to control the gonorrhea epidemic, so patients can receive immediate diagnoses and treatment. While the advent of nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) has improved the accuracy of Ng identification, very few POC assays are able to provide results of such tests at the clinical visit. Additionally, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) presents a unique treatment challenge for Ng. Areas covered This review notes that older POC tests have lower sensitivity for Ng, compared to the currently-available NAATs, and are not adequate for the current demand for high sensitivity. Promising newer assays, which can be used at the POC are covered. This review also includes data about clinicians’ and patients’ acceptability and expectations of POC tests for Ng, testing of extragenital specimens, pooling studies, as well as their impact clinically, and use in low-resource settings. Expert opinion The ability to use POC tests to identify and immediately treat Ng infections at the patient encounter offers many benefits and opportunities. POC tests for Ng are currently available, but not widely used especially in low-resource settings. Further development of POC tests with AMR testing capacity is needed to help guide antimicrobial stewardship.