Clinical and etiological studies of chlamydial conjunctivitis in Sapporo, Japan.

Chlamydia trachomatis was isolated from 21.5% (61/284 cases) of the patients with conjunctivitis seen in an eye clinic in Sapporo, Japan, during a recent 4-year period. The frequency was the highest in newborn babies and the 20- to 29-year-old age group. The early incidence of neonatal conjunctivitis suggested that transmission had occurred at delivery. Isolation by tissue culture is the most sensitive method for detection of this condition but the Micro Trak direct fluorescence antibody test is more practical. The detection of a specific IgG antibody and IgA antibody against chlamydia in human sera and in tears showed that patients with chlamydial conjunctivitis had the antibody before the onset of conjunctivitis.