Chlamydia: A Common and Treatable STI
Chlamydia is a sexually transmitted infection (STI). It's most often spread during unprotected vaginal or anal sex, but can be passed to anyone who is sexually active. It's one of the most common STIs in the United States, and many people don't know that they have it.
Treatment and Prevention
Treatment for chlamydia can be effective and will usually clear up your symptoms within 7 days of starting the antibiotics. But chlamydia may come back after you stop taking the medication, so it's important to test again 3 months after starting treatment.
Your doctor can tell you if you have chlamydia and prescribe an antibiotic, doxycycline or azithromycin. You'll need to take the medicine twice a day for 7 days. The doctor will decide which drug is best for your needs and the symptoms you're experiencing.
If you've been diagnosed with chlamydia, tell all your anal, vaginal, or oral sex partners from the past 60 days so they can get tested and treated. This can help prevent chlamydia from spreading to others, which can lead to serious complications for you and your partners.
Talk with your partner about sex and use barrier methods every time you have sex to decrease your risk of catching chlamydia. Using condoms and water-based lubricant for all sex can significantly decrease your risk of contracting this STI, as well as other STIs.
Testing and Screening
Get a chlamydia test at your next GP appointment or health clinic. There are tests that can be done at home, as well as those that require a urine sample or tissue swab. You can ask your doctor to give you a home test kit or order a home test from one of the companies that sell them.
You can also get a chlamydia screen at a sexual health or genitourinary medicine clinic. You can talk to your doctor to find out if this is right for you, and how many tests you should get per year.
Importance of Completing Treatment
Don't have sex until you and your partner have completed treatment for chlamydia. Then you and your partner should have a test three months later to make sure the disease is cured.
Getting a chlamydia infection is easy, and it can be treated quickly. But if you don't treat it, it can cause serious problems. It can damage the cervix in women, and it can spread to your uterus and fallopian tubes, causing pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). This can cause permanent damage to your reproductive system, leading to pain, infertility, ectopic pregnancy, and even death.
Seeking Medical Help
The first thing a health care professional will do is to check for chlamydia and treat it if necessary. This will help you feel better and reduce your risk of re-infecting yourself and other people with the disease.
Symptoms in Men
If you're a man, the most common symptoms of chlamydia are pain, swelling, and tenderness in your penis or the urethra (the tube that carries urine from the bladder to the outside). In some cases, men can experience a burning sensation during urination. They may also notice a discharge or clear or cloudy discharge from their penis or the tip of their anus.
