Male Urethritis Caused by Trichomonas vaginalis

Abstract

Trichomoniasis is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections worldwide. In women, Trichomonas vaginalis infection may present with vaginitis, cervicitis, or pelvic inflammatory disease, while in men it is mainly asymptomatic or causes mild and transient symptoms of urethritis, epididymitis, or prostatitis. In the past, little importance had been given to the impact of T. vaginalis infection on men’s health, since it was believed to be a self-limited condition without sequelae. However, there is growing evidence it is associated with more serious disorders in both men and women and efforts to diagnose and treat this parasitic infection have increased. Recent advances in testing for sexually transmitted diseases using multiplex molecular assays have increased diagnostic opportunities for T. vaginalis infection, especially in men, as detection of the parasite by traditional methods is much more challenging. We describe an unusual case of male urethritis caused by T. vaginalis observed in our consultation of Sexually Transmitted Infections.