Evaluation of urethral culture for Neisseria gonorrhoeae in the routine investigation of men attending a STD clinic.

Urethral gonorrhoea was diagnosed by culture in 957 (18.8%) of 5076 new male patients attending a sexually transmitted diseases clinic; the infection was asymptomatic in 38 (4%) of these patients. The diagnosis in only six (0.3%) out of 2159 men with urethral gonorrhoea but with no symptoms or signs of urethritis would have been missed if urethral cultures had not been performed.