How Do They Test Men For Chlamydia

Urine Testing Vs Bacterial Culture

Urine testing is currently primarily used to detect bacterial STDs. Chlamydia and gonorrhea urine tests are widely available. Trichomoniasis urine tests are also available, but they are less common.

The gold standard for diagnosing bacterial STDs, such as chlamydia and gonorrhea, used to be bacterial culture. That involved attempting to grow bacteria out of samples that were taken directly from the cervix or urethra.

These days, bacterial DNA testing is considered a better option. It works differently than bacterial culture. Instead of trying to grow bacteria, these tests just look for bacterial DNA. This can be done using a process called ligase chain reaction or with other DNA amplification techniques.

These types of testing are sensitive to even very small amounts of bacterial DNA. Even better, they do not require a live bacterial sample. As such, they can be run on urine samplesnot just urethral or cervical swabs.

For most people, the thought of a getting gonorrhea urine test or chlamydia urine test is a lot less intimidating than the thought of needing a physical exam.

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.

What Tests Are Usually Done

STI testing is done by taking swabs and collecting body fluids, which are sent to the lab. Testing for HIV, syphilis and hepatitis is done with a blood sample. Testing for chlamydia and gonorrhea is done with a urine sample, and/or a swab of your genitals, throat or anus. If you have symptoms, other swabs, tests or exams may be recommended.

• Men usually have a blood test, urine test and may have throat and rectal swabs.
• Women usually have a blood test and a pelvic exam. During the pelvic exam, the health care provider takes swabs from the vagina and/or cervix to test for chlamydia and gonorrhea. A Pap test may also be done.

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How To Test For Chlamydia: Chlamydia Culture

Chlamydia culture is another test used to diagnose for Chlamydia. It is a reliable laboratory test and the Chlamydia test results in this case might be available in up to a week. It is also more expensive than the others. This test is the most uncomfortable and painful as well. In men it consists of taking a swab of cells from the urethra through the opening at the tip of the penis. This is the main reason why most men prefer the urine sample tests even though they are less accurate.

Based on the Chlamydia test results, the doctor will decide a treatment plan for the both partners. The best thing about this infection is that it can be easily treated with antibiotics. Unless one gets re-infected it does not tend to cause more problems.

To conclude, a Chlamydia test for men should be ordered as soon as the symptoms have appeared in order to avoid the development of potential complications such as infertility.

Am I At Risk For Chlamydia

Anyone who has sex can get chlamydia through unprotected vaginal, anal, or oral sex. However, sexually active young people are at a higher risk of getting chlamydia. This is due to behaviors and biological factors common among young people. Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men are also at risk since chlamydia can spread through oral and anal sex.

Have an honest and open talk with your health care provider. Ask whether you should be tested for chlamydia or other STDs. If you are a sexually active woman younger than 25 years, you should get a test for chlamydia every year. If you are an older woman with risk factors such as new or multiple sex partners, or a sex partner who has an STD, you should get a test for chlamydia every year. Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men as well as pregnant women should also get tested for chlamydia.

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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.

What If My Results Are Positive

The Everlywell Chlamydia & Gonorrhea test includes an easy-to-understand lab report. But if you’re not sure how to read your chlamydia test results, your healthcare provider can help.

A positive STI test result can be unsettling, but you arenât alone: with the Everlywell Chlamydia & Gonorrhea Test, you have the opportunity to speak with a physician in our network to discuss your results further if you test positiveâand you may be prescribed medication.

If your chlamydia test is positive, STI testing is recommended for your sex partner . If they are infected and don’t receive treatment, they can pass the chlamydial infection back to you.

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Types Of Sti Tests And Exams That May Be Done:

Pelvic Exam: There are two parts to a pelvic exam.

• Speculum exam. A speculum is placed into the vagina and gently opened. Swabs are taken from the vagina or cervix and sent to the lab for STI testing.
• Bimanual exam. This is done to check your uterus , fallopian tubes, and ovaries. The health care provider will place two gloved, lubricated fingers into your vagina, and will gently press on your lower belly with the other hand. You may feel pressure, but it shouldn’t be painful.

Urine tests: You will be asked to pass urine into a cup. The tests are most accurate if you have not passed urine for 1-2 hours before giving the urine sample.

Swab tests: Swab tests are done with a sterile q-tip that is sent to the lab for testing. Swabs may be taken from the vagina, cervix, penis, throat, anus, or skin.

Blood tests: Both syphilis and HIV testing are done on blood samples. HIV testing is done in two ways.

What Are The Causes Of Chlamydia

You can get Chlamydia bacterial infection during oral, vaginal, and anal sex with someone who has this type infection. In woman case, she can also pass Chlamydia to her baby during childbirth. If you treated this infection in past then also it can be reappeared if you have unprotected sex with someone who have this type infection.

Best Way to Identify Such Infection:

There are some lab test exist of Chlamydia just provide your urine sample to care health care person and for women, provide cotton swab sample for vagina to test for this infection.

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How Long Does It Take For A Male To Show Signs Of Chlamydia

Symptoms in the penis Symptoms of chlamydia may affect the penis within 13 weeks of the person coming into contact with the infection. In some cases, though, these symptoms can take months to appear. Symptoms of chlamydia in the penis may include: white, cloudy, or watery discharge from the tip of the penis.

Syphilis Testing In Men

Unlike gonorrhea and chlamydia, syphilis is not treated with a urine test. If a male does experience symptoms in the early stage of syphilis, then a doctor will collect a body fluid sample such as discharge from the penis or open sore. This sample will then be sent to a lab to be tested for the syphilis bacteria.

If a male does not experience symptoms in the early stage of syphilis, this does not mean he is not infected. Like many other STDs, syphilis can fly under the radar in its early stage and sneak up in later stages when the infection is more advanced and harmful. In the later stages of syphilis a doctor will collect a blood sample to check if the infection is present. If the test comes back positive, the doctor will prescribe an antibiotic to clear the infection.

If syphilis remains untreated, it is possible that it will advance into the tertiary stage, where the infection can spread through the bloodstream and infect other parts of the body. This phase can lead to heart problems, neurological issues, blindness, paralysis and even death.

If you have or think you may have syphilis, refrain from any sexual activity until you have a clean bill of health. Learn more about syphilis testing

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How Chlamydia Is Treated

Chlamydia can usually be treated easily with antibiotics.

You may be given a course of doxycycline to take for a week or azithromycin to take once a day for 3 days.

If you have doxycycline, you should not have sex until you and your current sexual partner have finished treatment.

If you have azithromycin, you should wait 7 days after treatment before having sex .

It’s important that your current sexual partner and any other recent sexual partners you have had are also tested and treated to help stop the spread of the infection.

Under-25s who have chlamydia should be offered another test 3 to 6 months after being treated.

This is because young adults who test positive for chlamydia are at increased risk of catching it again.

Sexual health or genitourinary medicine clinics can help you contact your sexual partners.

Either you or the clinic can speak to them, or they can be sent a note advising them to get tested.

The note will not have your name on it, so your confidentiality will be protected.

Effects Of The Disease

Chlamydia can cause infertility if it is not treated. It damages sperm and scars the reproductive tract. It also damages your sperm in ways that can make birth defects prevalent.

Chlamydia can also affect you in non-sexual ways. You can get recurring pink eye, reactive arthritis and rheumatological conditions.

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Why Is Azithromycin Not A Chlamydia Treatment Anymore

The British Association for Sexual Health and HIV recently released guidelines explaining that Azithromycin is no longer an effective treatment for chlamydia. This is because of increasing levels of bacterial resistance to azithromycin. Instead, the recommended first-line treatment is now only doxycycline.

Symptoms Of Chlamydial Urethritis In Men

Men with chlamydial urethritis may not show symptoms at all, or they may only start to show symptoms several weeks after exposure to the bacteria. Symptoms of chlamydia and the related inflammation of the urethra usually occur between one and three weeks after exposure to the bacteria.

The signs of infection include:

• painful, swollen testicles

The urethra becomes inflamed during infection, making urinating more difficult. Discomfort in the penis is generally limited to the tip, where the urethra ends.

Symptoms of chlamydial urethritis in men can mimic the symptoms of gonorrhea. Gonorrhea and chlamydia infections often occur at the same time, and anyone infected may require treatment for both STDs.

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Can Chlamydia Lie Dormant And Not Show Up On A Test

A significant number of men do not typically show symptoms for STDs such as chlamydia although they are very capable of spreading the disease. Even though they are generally asymptomatic or dormant, they will still test positive for the STD. Most STDs that are in a dormant stage can be detected with a test.

How Do You Prevent Chlamydia

Using a new male or female condom or dental dam every time you have sex is the best way to protect against chlamydia.

Chlamydia can be passed on by sharing sex toys. Always cover sex toys with a new condom and wash them after use to reduce your risk of getting chlamydia and other STIs.

Its important to regularly test for chlamydia, even if you dont have any symptoms, especially if youve had multiple sexual partners.

The contraceptive pill and other types of contraception wont prevent you getting chlamydia, and neither will PrEP.

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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 aren’t 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.

Complications Of Chlamydia In Male Patients

Chlamydia is an infection that is far more prevalent among women, particularly during young adulthood, compared to the prevalence of the condition in men. Still, men do need to understand that the condition can affect them and will often not yield any symptoms. This, however, does not mean the bacterial infection poses no harm.

In cases where symptoms do develop in a male patient, the individual may experience the following signs of chlamydia:

• There may be a discharge from the mans penis
• The testicles may become painful
• There may be pain during urination
• The lower abdominal might also develop pain conditions

Since chlamydia is a bacterial infection in nature, men do need to understand that there are certain complications that can develop. These complications can sometimes be serious and require medical attention.

Urethritis is a common complication of chlamydia in men. The condition causes a bacterial infection to develop in the urethra. This is a tube that runs throughout the patients penis it is used to expel both urine and semen from the body.

Urethritis causes irritation in the tip of the patients penis and can make the inside of the penis feel itchy. There may also be a burning or stinging sensation within the penis this is the urethra showing signs of the infection. A discharge can also occur from the penis.

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How Common Is Chlamydia

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , 1,808,703 cases of chlamydia were reported in 2019 .. However, there are many more people with chlamydia who dont know they have it because theyve never had symptoms. Adolescents and young adults are at higher risk of getting chlamydia, since the rates of infection are highest in this age group.

What Are The Prominent Chlamydia Symptoms In Men

Actually, no one can easily ensure that his body has some trouble due to the silent infection because its symptoms are rarely reflected. But once if they start occurring then they can be easily noticed even within few weeks. Medical doctors say that symptoms of Chlamydia in men can be random and infrequent so most of the time patients are not able to know if they are in contact with the infection.

Some of the most common signs of Chlamydia in men include:

• Very small cloudy or clear Chlamydia discharge in men from penis tip.
• It can cause painful urination.
• Leads to itching and burning sensation around penis openings.
• Swelling and pain in the area surrounding testicles.

Major symptoms of Chlamydia are observed for genitals but in few cases it can affect rectum, eyes and throat. Note that, the actual effect varies with type of transmission. Few uncommon symptoms of chlamydia in men can include:

• Throat infections.
• Rectal bleeding, discharge or pain.

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How Chlamydia Tests Are Carried

The experts will ask you for urine sample and in order to generate best results it is essential to refrain passing urine for at least two hours before taking the test sample. In case you were engaged in anal sex and are now experiences few symptoms of Chlamydia then it is important to visit GP and follow procedures for swab of your throat or rectrum.

These samples will be processed in laboratories and you will get final results within few days. But in case if you cannot wait so long then it is good to order a home Chlamydia testing kit and get it delivered within 48 hours.

What To Think About

• If a chlamydia infection is suspected, do not have sexual intercourse until the test results have come back. If you have a chlamydia infection, do not have sexual intercourse for 7 days after the start of treatment. Your sex partner should also be treated for a chlamydia infection so that you don’t get reinfected and so that others don’t get infected.
• Only one laboratory test is needed to diagnose chlamydia. Your doctor can choose which test to use.
• Screening for and treating chlamydia can help prevent pelvic inflammatory disease . To learn more about the treatment of a chlamydia infection, see the topic Chlamydia.
• Other sexually transmitted infections may be present at the same time as chlamydia. So it is important to be tested and treated for all STIs. Chlamydia as well as other STIs can also increase the chance of getting human immunodeficiency virus . An HIV test may be offered at the same time as a test for chlamydia or other STIs.

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