Measures designed to reduce the incidence of cervicitis are those that make transmission of any STD less likely. Consistent and proper use of contraception, especially condoms, should be encouraged. Patients with a history of cervicitis or other STDs should be targeted for being at high risk and should have periodic screening tests to search for pathogens such as N. gonorrhoeae and C. trachomatis, even at times when they are asymptomatic. Other groups, including patients with multiple sexual partners, those with genitourinary symptoms, pregnant adolescents, and some adolescent clinic populations, also should be considered at increased risk and be monitored similarly. To be effective, encounters with adolescents around matters related to sexuality and STD must be done privately and with confidentiality assured. Special attention should be paid to the adolescent's family and cultural milieu, as well as to their level of psychosocial development, so that specific needs, fears, and misconceptions can be addressed. Cervicitis and other STDs are so common and have such important personal and public health implications that identification and effective treatment are of critical importance. The general tendency to be parsimonious when fitting together signs and symptoms into a medical diagnosis must be modified when dealing with STDs as multiple concomitant infections do occur routinely.