Can You Prevent Chlamydia
You can lower your risk of getting chlamydia and other STIs by:
- using a condom every time you have vaginal, oral or anal sex
- not having sex with someone with chlamydia, even with a condom, until theyve finished treatment and 1 week has passed since their last dose of antibiotics
- regularly getting tested for STIs, especially if you are under 30 and sexually active
Remember that most people with chlamydia dont show any symptoms and dont know they have it, so feeling ‘well’ does not mean that you or your partner are not infected. If in doubt, get tested.
If you have chlamydia, you can help reduce the spread by letting your recent sexual partners know so they can get tested and treated.
Research And Statistics: How Many People Get Chlamydia
Chlamydia is a very common infection, constituting the largest proportion of all STDs reported to the CDC since 1994.
The American Sexual Health Association , for instance, estimates that as many as three million people have chlamydia each year in the United States.
Certain groups are much more likely to get chlamydia than the general population. For example, the rate of reported chlamydia in 2017 was about 39.9 cases per 1,000 people among women ages 20 to 24, and about 32.7 per 1,000 people among women ages 15 to 19.
Among men age 19 or younger who visited an STD clinic in 2017, nearly 40 percent of those who had sex with women tested positive for chlamydia. This number was nearly 30 percent for men ages 20 to 24 who had sex with women, and only slightly lower for men who had sex with men.
The rate of reported chlamydia varies widely throughout the United States at the county and state level. In 2017, West Virginia, Vermont, and New Hampshire had the lowest reported rates of chlamydia, while the highest rates were found in the District of Columbia, Alaska, Louisiana, and Mississippi. The region with the highest rate of chlamydia was the South, while the Northeast had the lowest rate.
When To See A Doctor
If you are sexually active and displaying symptoms of chlamydia, or you believe you were exposed to the bacterial infection through a sexual partner, see a doctor for evaluation and treatment as soon as possible.
The CDC advises sexually active women under 25 years old get screened for chlamydia every year. Its also a good idea to be tested when beginning a sexual relationship with a new partner.
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Male Complications Of Untreated Chlamydia
Men can also experience complications when chlamydia is left untreated. The epididymis the tube that holds the testicles in place may become inflamed, causing pain. This is known as epididymitis.
The infection can also spread to the prostate gland, causing a fever, painful intercourse, and discomfort in the lower back. Another possible complication is male chlamydial urethritis.
These are just some of the most common complications of untreated chlamydia, which is why its important to get medical attention right away. Most people who get treatment quickly have no long-term medical problems.
How To Tell Your Partner You Have Chlamydia
The first thing you need to do when your test comes back positive is to tell your partner. Your sexual partner should know about the infection so that they too can be tested and treated. If you dont tell them about your condition, youre risking getting reinfected.
Here are some tips for handling the conversation:
- Educate yourself about the STD youve contracted so you can thoroughly explain to your partner what exactly you have, the treatment, and how you plan on keeping them safe.
- Inform your current or most recent sexual partner about a positive STD test by telling them face-to-face, or by calling them. Sending them a message is not the most respectful way.
- When telling them the news, stay calm and collected. Sit them down and tell them youve been tested. Tell them that the results are positive and discuss the next steps.
- Make sure you keep your partner from getting infected. Use condoms at all times, take antibiotics, and abstain from intercourse during your treatment.
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Can You Have Chlamydia In The Mouth
Chlamydia is known to infect the oropharynx, a part of the throat that’s behind the mouth. So technically speaking, chlamydia can infect the throat instead of the mouth directly. However, chlamydia in women and men can be transmitted through the mouth of an infected partner during certain sexual activities like oral sex.
How Long Does It Take To Show Up On A Test
There are several tests that you doctor might use to diagnose chlamydia:
- Urine test. Youll pee in a cup thats sent off to a laboratory testing facility to see if any chlamydia bacteria are present in your urine.
- Blood test. Your doctor will use a sterile needle to draw some of your blood and send it to a lab to see if antibodies to the chlamydia bacteria are present in your bloodstream.
- Swab. Your doctor will use a cotton round or stick to take a small sample of tissue or fluid that carries the infection, which is then sent to a lab to be cultured so that lab technicians can see what bacteria grows from the sample.
How long it takes for the results to show up depends on the test and on your specific health insurance plan.
- Urine tests take about 2 to 5 days to show a positive or negative result.
- Blood tests can come back with results in a few minutes if the blood is analyzed on site. But they can take a week or more if sent to an off-site lab.
- Swab results take about 2 to 3 days to show a positive or negative.
1 to 3 weeks to show up in people with vulvas.
Symptoms may take up a few months to show up. This is because bacteria are living creatures and have an incubation period that affects how long it takes them to cluster together and become infectious.
This incubation period is dependent on a variety of factors, including:
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How Do You Get Oral Chlamydia
A person can get oral chlamydia by giving vaginal, penile, or anal oral sex to another person already infected with the bacteria.
Chlamydia trachomatis can also be spread from an infected persons throat to the penis. Research has not shown that the infection can spread from an infected persons throat to the vagina or rectum during oral sex.
Chlamydia does not seem to spread through kissing.
Chlamydia Symptoms In Females
Chlamydia symptoms in females are rare. Roughly 7 in 10 women dont experience any symptoms. The infection may be asymptomatic, meaning that people dont know they have it.
If signs and symptoms occur, they usually happen one to three weeks after the exposure, but could start much later. The symptoms are often mild and passing, and easy to overlook.
Some of the potential signs and symptoms of chlamydia include:
- lower abdominal pain
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Racial Disparity And Chlamydia
The prevalence of chlamydia is drastically different across racial and ethnic groups in the United States. Overall, Black, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander women have the highest rates of chlamydia, according to the CDC.
In 2017, the reported rate of chlamydia in Black Americans was 5.6 times the rate of white Americans. Among Native Americans and Alaska Natives, this number was 3.7, and for Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, it was 3.4. Hispanic Americans were 1.9 times as likely to have chlamydia as white Americans, while Asian Americans were only 0.6 times as likely.
Among young women ages 14 to 24, the CDC estimates that the prevalence of chlamydia is about 10 percent for Mexican Americans, and about 8 percent for Black girls and women. This number is only about 2 percent for non-Hispanic white girls and women.
How Do You Get Chlamydia
Chlamydia is usually spread during sexual contact with someone who has the infection. It can happen even if no one cums. The main ways people get chlamydia are from having vaginal sex and anal sex, but it can also be spread through oral sex.
Rarely, you can get chlamydia by touching your eye if you have infected fluids on your hand. Chlamydia can also be spread to a baby during birth if the mother has it.
Chlamydia isnt spread through casual contact, so you CANT get chlamydia from sharing food or drinks, kissing, hugging, holding hands, coughing, sneezing, or sitting on the toilet.
Using condoms and/or dental dams every time you have sex is the best way to help prevent chlamydia.
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What Are 5 Symptoms Of Chlamydia
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Symptoms of chlamydia can appear in both men and women, including:
- pain or burning while peeing.
- pain during sex.
- abnormal vaginal discharge
- bleeding between periods.
- pus or a watery/milky discharge from the penis.
- swollen or tender testicles.
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Chlamydia | Top 5 Symptoms Experienced by Men and Women
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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.
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Why Wait Seven Days After Chlamydia Treatment
If youre getting treatment for chlamydia, avoid oral, anal, or vaginal sex until seven days after the treatment is over. As chlamydia is a bacteria, your health care provider will most likely prescribe you antibiotics that need time to be effective.
If your partner is getting treatment, you should wait seven days after they take all of their medicine. If you dont wait for the treatment to be effective and have sex earlier, you can get the infection again.
Home Remedies For Chlamydia Symptoms
You may still experience painful or uncomfortable symptoms while youre taking chlamydia antibiotics.
Here are some home remedies for reducing your pain and other symptoms while youre waiting for the antibiotics to work:
- pain medications, such as ibuprofen to reduce pain
- cold pack to help limit swelling and inflammation
- goldenseal to reduce inflammation and potentially make symptoms less severe
- echinacea to bolster your immune system against the infection and reduce your symptoms
- turmeric containing an ingredient called curcumin to reduce inflammation and make symptoms less severe
No studies support the effectiveness of these supplements specifically for chlamydia, so take them with caution.
And theres no substitute for antibiotics when treating chlamydia. Only try these remedies if youre already taking antibiotics or if you plan to go to the doctor.
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Chlamydia In The Rectum Throat Or Eyes
Chlamydia can also infect:
- the rectum if you have unprotected anal sex this can cause discomfort and discharge from your rectum
- the throat if you have unprotected oral sex this is uncommon and usually causes no symptoms
- the eyes if they come into contact with infected semen or vaginal fluid this can cause eye redness, pain and discharge
Can You Get Chlamydia If You Use A Condom
A condom lowers your chances of getting chlamydia if used correctly.
Correct use of a condom includes:
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Chlamydia Cdc Fact Sheet
Chlamydia is a common sexually transmitted disease that can be easily cured. If left untreated, chlamydia can make it difficult for a woman to get pregnant.
Basic Fact Sheet | Detailed Version
Basic fact sheets are presented in plain language for individuals with general questions about sexually transmitted diseases. The content here can be syndicated .
How Long Does Chlamydia Last
Once you are infected with chlamydia, it is unclear how long chlamydia can last in your system until treatment. Some estimate it can last for years. Once you have been infected, you can get tested immediately. In some cases, if you test negative but the suspected sexual encounter was recent, a doctor may advise you to come back after two weeks to be retested to ensure it is a fully correct diagnosis. After completing treatment the infection usually clears in 7 to 10 days.
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How Do You Know When Chlamydia Is Gone
Chlamydia is an usual sexually transmitted disease that can contaminate both men and women. It can cause serious, irreversible damage to a womans reproductive system. How Do You Know When Chlamydia Is Gone
This can make it hard or impossible for her to get pregnant in the future. Chlamydia can additionally create a possibly deadly ectopic maternity a pregnancy that happens outside the womb.
What Causes Chlamydia
Chlamydia infections spread through sexual contact, when vaginal fluid or semen containing the bacteria that causes chlamydia travels from one person to another. Sexual contact includes all kinds of sex, including sex that doesnt involve penetration or ejaculation. There are lots of ways that the fluids from one persons genitals can transmit the bacteria that causes chlamydia.
- Intercourse. Bacteria pass from one persons penis to their partners vagina or vice versa.
- Anal sex. Bacteria passes from one persons penis to their partners anus or vice versa.
- Oral sex. Bacteria passes from one persons mouth to their partners penis, vagina, or anus, or vice versa.
- Sex involving toys. Bacteria pass from a toy with the bacteria to a persons mouth, penis, vagina or anus.
- Manual stimulation of the genitals or anus. Less commonly, infected vaginal fluid or semen can come in contact with a persons eye, causing an infection called conjunctivitis. For example, this can happen if you touch the genitals of an infected person and then rub your eyes without washing your hands first.
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How Common Is It
Oral chlamydia is not as common as genital chlamydia. Research shows that approximately 10% of people who visited a sexually transmitted disease clinic had genital chlamydia, but only 1.5% also had an infection in the throat.
Genital gonorrhea is not as common as genital chlamydia, but oral gonorrhea is more common than oral chlamydia.
How Do Men Get Treated For Chlamydia
Meninfected with chlamydia will receive a prescribed drug, usually calleddoxycycline. This antibiotic is most typically used for treating chlamydia.However, if the patient is allergic to any of the ingredients in thisantibiotic, they will receive a different one with similar potency. Theantibiotics used for treatment can only be prescribed by your doctor.
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How Is Chlamydia Spread
You can get chlamydia by having vaginal, anal, or oral sex with someone who has chlamydia.
If your sex partner is male you can still get chlamydia even if he does not ejaculate .
If youve had chlamydia and were treated in the past, you can still get infected again. This can happen if you have unprotected sex with someone who has chlamydia.
What If I Don’t Get It Treated
If chlamydia is left untreated it can become a serious threat to your health.
Chlamydia can spread from your cervix to your uterus and fallopian tubes. It can cause pelvic inflammatory disease , which can damage and block your tubes. You may not be able to get pregnant if both tubes are blocked because sperm are unable to reach the egg. If you have had PID you are more at risk of having an ectopic pregnancy or long-term pelvic pain.
Chlamydia can spread from your penis to your testicles and cause painful swelling. You can become infertile.
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How Do Men Get Tested For Chlamydia
A doctor will perform a number of tests to make sure if a man carries the infection. The first test starts with a urine sample. When the patient provides the urine sample, the sample will then be taken to the lab to examine if the bacteria is present in the urine.
For more results, the doctor can take a urethral discharge swab to rule out any infections like syphilis or gonorrhea. Since these STIs have similar symptoms with chlamydia, its easy to misjudge them. With a swab test, the doctor will determine which infection has manifested in the system. See our Chlamydia Test in the webshop.
Theway a swab is taken in males is by inserting a very thin and sterile cottonswab into the urethra . Allthe fluids and discharge collected will be taken for further analysis.