Table 2 Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria: | |
1. Papers from January 2012 to November 2018 (included in search terms) | |
2. Papers investigating testing strategies or approaches of one or more of the five pathogens of interest: C. trachomatis, N. gonorrhoeae, T. pallidum, M. genitalium, and T. vaginalis (included in search terms) | |
3. Papers reported in English from any country | |
4. Papers reported in any European language from an EU/EEA country and Switzerland | |
5. Papers reporting primary data | |
6. Papers reporting on a testing approach or strategy for initial diagnosis of the index case, with the purpose of improving access to testing, testing coverage, or linkage to care (e.g. service evaluations) | |
7. Papers reporting on genital and extra-genital (rectal and pharyngeal) infections resulting from sexual transmission in patients. | |
Exclusion criteria: | |
1. Papers reported in a non-English language outside of the EU/EEA and Switzerland (e.g. Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, or for example, a paper reported in French from Senegal) | |
2. Systematic reviews, guidelines, organisational reports, abstract booklets, mathematical modelling studies | |
3. Papers evaluating a testing approach or strategy not for the purpose of improving access to testing, testing coverage, or linkage to care (e.g. prevalence study only, diagnostic accuracy study, risk factor/association studies) | |
4. Papers evaluating a testing approach or strategy without having a comparison group | |
5. Papers evaluating a testing approach or strategy not for the purpose of initial diagnosis of the index case (e.g. studies on test of cure, partner notification, or retesting) | |
6. Papers looking at testing of complications of infection (e.g. pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), tubal infertility, neurosyphilis) | |
7. Papers reporting on ocular, pulmonary or other (not pharyngeal or rectal) extra-genital infection | |
8. Papers reporting on animal or in vitro infections (e.g. diagnostics used in the laboratory only) | |
9. Papers reporting on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) testing only |