To the Editor.—It is a little invidious for an English venereologist to pass comment upon the sexual climate of the United States but few persons would dispute that the situation, as regards the sexually transmissible diseases and in particular gonorrhea, in your country, as in Europe, leaves little room for complacency.
Professor John D. Nelson, in a recent article in the Journal1 states, "... the two vital components of gonorrheal control programs are treating contacts of known cases and seeking out asymptomatic carriers." In Newcastle-upon-Tyne we have undertaken intensive contact tracing for 30 years. I have recorded elsewhere2 that we successfully trace 87.7% of female primary source contacts of male gonorrhea patients available to us within our own catchment area. Of these, 86.5% are found to be infected. We successfully trace 97.1% of secondary subsequent contacts and of these, 75.3% are found to be infected. In spite of