Chlamydia Information

Most people who have chlamydia don't know they've got it. There are often no symptoms and it has been estimated that 70% of women and 50% of men are unaware that they have an infection that, if left untreated, can lead to reproductive health problems.

Chlamydia is a bacterial infection that is found in the cervix and urethra in women and the urethra in men.

Dangers of Chlamydia

If the chlamydia infection is untreated it can affect the uterus or fallopian tubes and may result in Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) This can lead to chronic pain in the pelvis, infertility and ectopic pregnancies, which in extreme cases can be fatal.

Chlamydia Symptoms

Many people with chlamydia will not experience symptoms at all, however, where symptoms are present, the following may be experienced:

Research has indicated that if chlamydia is not treated it can result in premature births. When newborn babies suffer from conjunctivitis and pneumonia, the most frequent cause is chlamydia.

Chlamydia Treatment

Treatment with antibiotics will usually clear up the infection. In most cases Azithromycin is prescribed. This is a one-off dose. Alternatively Doxycycline may be recommended, which will be a seven day course. If you wish to be retested after treatment, you should wait at least three weeks. All recent sexual partners should be tested and, if necessary, treated. If you are experiencing symptoms such as unusual discharge from the genitals we suggest you should have the Full Sexual Health Screen, so that we can ascertain exactly what the problem is. It is not a good idea to attempt to guess which, if any, infection you may have. You should abstain from sex for 7 days after your treatment is completed.