Who Should Get Tested
When considering whether to include chlamydia screening as part of their womens health care, Portland women should consider their risk factors. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends chlamydia screening for:
Sexually active women 25 or younger: Because this group has the highest rate of infection, these women should consider getting screenings every year as well as when switching to a new sexual partner.
Pregnant women: Women who are pregnant should get tested for chlamydia during their first prenatal exam. Those with a high risk of infection should get tested again later in the pregnancy.
Women at high risk: For those who have multiple sexual partners, dont always use a condom, or have contracted another sexually transmitted infection, frequent chlamydia screenings are advisable.
How Does Chlamydia Affect A Pregnant Woman And Her Baby
In pregnant women, untreated chlamydia has been associated with pre-term delivery,34 as well as ophthalmia neonatorum and pneumonia in the newborn. In published prospective studies, chlamydial conjunctivitis has been identified in 18-44% and chlamydial pneumonia in 3-16% of infants born to women with untreated chlamydial cervical infection at the time of delivery.9-12 Neonatal prophylaxis against gonococcal conjunctivitis routinely performed at birth does not effectively prevent chlamydial conjunctivitis.37-39
Screening and treatment of chlamydia in pregnant women is the best method for preventing neonatal chlamydial disease. All pregnant women should be screened for chlamydia at their first prenatal visit. Pregnant women under 25 and those at increased risk for chlamydia should be screened again in their third trimester. Pregnant women with chlamydial infection should be retested 3 weeks and 3 months after completion of recommended therapy.40
What Happens If I Dont Get Treated
The initial damage that chlamydia causes often goes unnoticed. However, chlamydia can lead to serious health problems.
If you are a woman, untreated chlamydia can spread to your uterus and fallopian tubes . This can cause pelvic inflammatory disease . PID often has no symptoms, however some women may have abdominal and pelvic pain. Even if it doesnt cause symptoms initially, PID can cause permanent damage to your reproductive system. PID can lead to long-term pelvic pain, inability to get pregnant, and potentially deadly ectopic pregnancy .
Men rarely have health problems linked to chlamydia. Infection sometimes spreads to the tube that carries sperm from the testicles, causing pain and fever. Rarely, chlamydia can prevent a man from being able to have children.
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Should I Get A Chlamydia Test
It can be a good idea to screen for chlamydia and other STIs if youâre considering having sexual intercourse with a new partner. If you believe you have been exposed to chlamydia or are experiencing symptoms , consider screening for infection by visiting a local clinicâ âor take a chlamydia test at home.
Also, according to the CDC, if you’re a sexually active woman younger than 25, you should test for chlamydia and gonorrhea at least once a year . You should also get tested yearly if you’re 25 or older and have risk factors like new or multiple sex partners. The CDC also recommends annual gonorrhea and chlamydia testing for gay and bisexual men.
Home Std Tests Are Convenient But There Are Drawbacks
Seeing a health care provider usually is the most reliable way to determine if you have a sexually transmitted disease . In some cases, home testing for STDs provides a convenient or necessary alternative, but it may come with some drawbacks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that of the nearly 20 million estimated new STD infections each year, about half of them are among young people age 15 to 24. The most recent CDC surveys show large surges from 2014 to 2018 in cases of gonorrhea, chlamydia, primary and secondary syphilis, and congenital syphilis.
Some STDs do not cause symptoms or the symptoms are barely noticeable so many infected people dont know they need treatment. If left untreated, though, STDs can lead to severe health complications such as pelvic inflammatory disease, increased risk for HIV, certain cancers, and infertility.
Because the number of infections and need for screening have increased, at-home test kits for STDs such as HIV, chlamydia, and gonorrhea have grown in popularity. Visiting a clinic is the best choice for screening, but if privacy concerns, inconvenience, or limited access to a provider are issues, then online and home-to-lab STD screening tests may be a good option.
Pros and Cons
UAB Medicine obstetrician and gynecologist Shweta Patel, MD, says home testing may be a good option in certain cases.
After the Results Are In
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Human Immunodeficiency Virus Testing In Men
HIV testing is done on a blood sample and detects whether or not a person is HIVpositive or HIVnegative. If a person tests HIVpositive, this means the virus has infected their white blood cells, which are used to fight off infections.
No test preparation is needed. The only thing you need to do is contact your doctor to perform the needed tests or order the testing yourself online. Most physicians offer counseling before and after the test to discuss:
- How the test is done
- How long it will take for results
- What positive results mean
- Future testing that needs to be done
- What you can expect for your future
- How HIV is related to AIDS
- How to keep HIV under control
The window period for HIV antibodies to appear in ones system is anywhere between 2 weeks to 6 months after infection. During this period a person is still highly contagious. If you think you may be infected with HIV, you should refrain from sexual contact until you have tested HIVnegative at 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months after exposure. Learn more about HIV testing
Recognizing The Symptoms In The Genital Region
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How Does Lab Test Work
Lab test is a process of finding which things irritate your body or which things we have to give for bettering our self. Like in this case for this infection, this is a sexual transmission infection so for check it we have to do test the sample of our body and check it where of this is going,
So for men we take urine for testing and for woman we take swab for testing,
- They check all the things of your body.
- They do many hidden test for related your body.
- If significant things available then its marked in report of your body.
- Gives solution and suggestion related to your body.
How Can I Prevent Spreading Chlamydia
If you think you have chlamydia, the first thing you need to do is stop having sexual intercourse and get tested and treated. Ask your health care provider if you can get a prescription for your partner , or find out if your partner can be seen by a health care provider to get treated. Youll need to let all current and past sexual partners know that you have chlamydia . You may find this hard to do, but its very important so that those infected can get treated before more serious health problems occur.
You can let your sexual partner know in a couple of different ways:
- You can tell them face to face, over the phone, or via a text message.
- You can use an anonymous notification application, such as: an email from a reliable website such as bedsider.org. This website will send a confidential email card to your partner for free. Another website, inspot.org will send an anonymous text to your partner.
Research has shown that notifying your partner in real time or face to face is the best way to get your partner treated.
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What About Partners
If a person has been diagnosed and treated for chlamydia, he or she should tell all recent anal, vaginal, or oral sex partners so they can see a health care provider and be treated. This will reduce the risk that the sex partners will develop serious complications from chlamydia and will also reduce the persons risk of becoming re-infected. A person with chlamydia and all of his or her sex partners must avoid having sex until they have completed their treatment for chlamydia and until they no longer have symptoms. For tips on talking to partners about sex and STD testing, visit www.gytnow.org/talking-to-your-partner/external icon
To help get partners treated quickly, healthcare providers in some states may give infected individuals extra medicine or prescriptions to give to their sex partners. This is called expedited partner therapy or EPT. In published clinical trials comparing EPT to traditional patient referral , EPT was associated with fewer persistent or recurrent chlamydial infections in the index patient, and a larger reported number of partners treated.52 For providers, EPT represents an additional strategy for partner management of persons with chlamydial infection partners should still be encouraged to seek medical evaluation, regardless of whether they receive EPT. To obtain further information regarding EPT, including the legal status of EPT in a specific area, see the Legal Status of Expedited Partner Therapy.
What Is An Std
An STD is a medical condition that is spread through sexual contact. Sometimes, sexually transmitted diseases are referred to as sexually transmitted infections or STIs. There are a number of STIs that can be transmitted through oral, vaginal or anal intercourse. Common STIs include genital herpes, human papillomavirus , chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and hepatitis C. You can help reduce your risk of contracting an STD by using condoms during sex.
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What Are The Adverse Consequences
Chlamydia is one of the most important preventable causes of infertility. Left untreated, it can lead to infertility in women and reduced fertility in men.
In pregnant women, it can lead to increased risk of miscarriage, preterm delivery and potentially fatal tubal pregnancy. If the baby is exposed during delivery, he or she could suffer from eye infections or pneumonia.
How Much Does The Test Cost
The cost of chlamydia testing varies based on many factors. Chlamydia testing may be paid for by health insurance when ordered by a doctor. Because health plans vary, its important for patients to discuss the cost of testing, including any copays or deductibles, with their health plan.
For patients without health insurance coverage, the cost of testing may include the cost of the office visit and sample collection as well as technician fees. Testing may also be available for free or at low cost through community-based organizations and local health departments.
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What Happens During Standard Std Testing
There is a common misconception that a doctor checks for STDs during a regular checkup. This is far from the truth. In most cases, your doctor does not perform STD testing unless you specifically ask for it.
Since there is no way to test for every STD, medical professionals usually test for the most common types of disease, which include gonorrhea, HIV and chlamydia. The STD testing covers anywhere from six to 14 STDs, depending on where you get the test taken.
Even though physicians test for the most common STDs, they do not test for herpes and HPV unless you exhibit symptoms of the diseases.
What Happens During A Chlamydia Test
If you are a woman, your health care provider will use a small brush or swab to take a sample of cells from your vagina for testing. You may also be offered the option of testing yourself at home using a test kit. Ask your provider for recommendations on which kit to use. If you do the test at home, be sure to follow all the directions carefully.
If you’re a man, your health care provider may use a swab to take a sample from your urethra, but it is more likely that a urine test for chlamydia will be recommended. Urine tests can also be used for women. During a urine test, you will be instructed to provide a clean catch sample.
The clean catch method generally includes the following steps:
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How Do Std Tests Work
Home STD testing kits typically screen for one or more STDs using a urine sample, a blood sample or both types of samples. After the sample is collected, you package it and send it away to a laboratory using an envelope included in the kit. Results are either published anonymously online or provided over the phone or through the mail. You can read the product descriptions to find out more about what’s involved with each of the testing kits in this product selection. Make sure to take note of which STDs the kit can detect.
Can Urgent Care Really Help Me With An Std Test
The short answer is, yes! Many people who are looking for routine or precautionary STD tests visit urgent care facilities instead of a private practice or their primary care physician. Urgent care facilities are a great option if you are concerned that you may have contracted an STD and need to see a physician.
If you are sexually active, it is best practice for you and your partner to receive regular STD tests, even if youre both taking precautionary steps to avoid receiving and transferring STDs. Many STDs spread through body fluids, such as blood, vaginal fluids, or semen. While condoms are 98% effective in preventing transferring STDs like chlamydia and gonorrhea that are spread through body fluids, they do not protect against STDs that spread from skin-to-skin contact, like genital warts, herpes, and syphilis. Some STDs hide in plain sight and do not show symptoms, so you may not know you have one. The best thing for you and your partner to do is to get tested once every three to twelve months, depending on your level of sexual activity to ensure that you are STD free.
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How You Prevent It
Remember to always practice safer sex and use condoms. This will lower the risk of getting chlamydia or other STIs.
If you find out that you have chlamydia, your partner need to be told that they could have an infection even if there arent any symptoms. If you have concerns about telling your partner, contact a public health nurse.
The public health nurse can suggest ways to handle the situation or they will contact your partner for you. Of course, your name will be kept confidential.
You can get chlamydia from having vaginal, oral or anal sex without a condom, or sharing sex toys with an infected person.
How Will I Get My Results
It can take a few days to get your results from a swab test, similar to a Pap smear test in women. If youre a woman, you may also be able to obtain an at-home kit to do the vaginal testing on your own.
Your doctor will call you with the results of your test. Be sure you give your doctor your preferred phone number where you can have privacy, such as a mobile phone number. If you dont want them to leave you a voicemail, be sure you tell them before you leave your appointment.
A urine test is much faster to analyze. Your doctor should be able to tell you the results during the same day as your appointment. The downside is that urine tests may not be as accurate as traditional swab testing.
However, urine testing may be more suitable for men. Its also used for more advanced signs of chlamydia, as your body will have a greater number of bacteria to detect at this stage.
You can obtain a chlamydia test from:
- your primary doctor
- a home testing kit and service
find affordable testing
There are clinics that can perform chlamydia testing at a low cost. In some cases, you may obtain testing free-of-charge. You can find a clinic through the American Sexual Health Associations free locator here. All results are confidential.
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