How Is Chlamydia Treated For Females

What Are Chlamydia Symptoms

Chlamydia in women and people with female reproductive organs is often asymptomatic. This means that people often do not experience any discomfort or notice any changes while infected.

Without any symptoms, people may be infected and not know it. Some people may have very mild or vague symptoms after they are infected, which can be confused with a urinary tract infection or vaginal infection .

Treating Newborns And Infants

Chlamydia infections in newborns and infants are far less common today due to the routine screening of STIs in people with pregnancy. If an infection occurs, it typically happens during childbirth as the baby passes through the mother’s birth canal.

Chlamydia in newborns is most often recognized when the child develops conjunctivitis , typically five to 12 days after birth. Some babies may have no such symptoms and instead develop pneumonia with fever between the ages of one and three months.

If a chlamydia infection is confirmed, the baby would be treated with an antibiotic called erythromycin, The dose is calculated in milligrams per kilogram of the baby’s body weight.

In cases of chlamydial pneumonia, oral azithromycin can be used as an alternative.

Erythromycin, while safer for newborns and infants, is only around 80% effective in clearing C. trachomatis. As a result, a second round of antibiotics may be needed to fully clear the infection.

The Costs Of Infertility

Treating chlamydia is easy, but for those who do not get treated or get treated too late, living with the damage caused by the infection can be hard.

Rabin has treated many women who never knew they had had chlamydia until they couldnt get pregnant due to blocked fallopian tubes. These women often wind up trying in vitro fertilization , which does not always succeed.

There are all kinds of costs involved for these women, say Rabin. There are emotional costs and physical costs. There are also financial costs with IVF. Its much better to not let the tubes get damaged, she says, and get pregnant the old-fashioned way.

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Why Cant I Repeat The Chlamydia Test After Ive Taken My Treatment To Check It Worked

You can, but it takes up to 6 weeks for the test to go back to negative after an infection. If you re-test too early a positive result can be a sign of continuing or re-infection, but its most likely to be positive from the initial infection, so its not at all helpful.

If you are under 25 years of age, it is recommended to have a repeat test 3 months after treatment as a significant number of young people get repeat infections which are linked to an increased risk of complications.

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What Happens If I Get Chlamydia When Im Pregnant

• Chlamydia during pregnancy has been associated in very rare cases with problems such as premature birth, and infection of the uterus lining after the birth.
• It can be passed to the baby during the birth and before the baby is born. This can cause inflammation and discharge in the babys eye and/or pneumonia.
• You may be offered a chlamydia test as part of your antenatal care.
• Chlamydia can be treated with antibiotics when youre pregnant and when youre breastfeeding. The antibiotics wont harm the baby, but do tell the doctor or nurse that youre pregnant or breastfeeding.
• Youll be advised to have another test after you complete your treatment.

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Chlamydia In Women: A Complete Guide

To help women protect themselves against this common type of sexually transmitted disease , Flo has prepared a guide that explains the basics of chlamydia.

STDs are infections that are transmitted from one person to another via sexual contact. Today, there are over 20 types of STDs and chlamydia is one of them.

Whether you suspect that you might have it or want to educate yourself, let this guide help you find all the answers you were looking for.

Condom Use During The Treatment Period

• Avoid having sex without a condom during treatment because the infection can still be transmitted. Use condoms for 7 days after the start of treatment and until 7 days after all current sexual contacts have been treated.
• If you are on a combined oral contraceptive pill, use a condom for 14 days when having sex, as antibiotics can affect the reliability of the contraceptive pill.

After completing the treatment, phone your doctor or return to the clinic for a follow-up after 3 months to check you have not been re-infected.

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Chlamydia Symptoms In Women

Chlamydia is often known as the silent infection. Thats because people with chlamydia may not experience symptoms at all.

If a woman contracts the STI, it may take several weeks before any symptoms appear.

Some of the most common symptoms of chlamydia in women include:

• painful sexual intercourse

In some women, the infection can spread to the fallopian tubes, which may cause a condition called pelvic inflammatory disease . PID is a medical emergency.

The symptoms of PID are:

• abnormal vaginal bleeding between periods

Chlamydia can also infect the rectum. Women may not experience symptoms if they have a chlamydia infection in the rectum. If symptoms of a rectal infection do occur, however, they may include rectal pain, discharge, and bleeding.

Additionally, women can develop a throat infection if they have oral sex with someone with the infection. Though its possible to contract it without knowing it, symptoms of a chlamydia infection in your throat include cough, fever, and sore throat.

The symptoms of STIs in men and women can be different, so its important to talk with a healthcare professional if you experience any of the above symptoms.

Signs And Symptoms Of Chlamydia

Chlamydia is known as one of the silent diseases which can produce no symptoms for a long period of time. Approximately 7095 percent of women and 50 percent of men with chlamydia do not observe chlamydia symptoms at all. The symptoms can also be mild and almost unnoticeable.

Another reason why symptoms are not the best way to determine the infection is that it is often confused with gonorrhea as the symptoms are very much alike. Asymptomatic nature of chlamydia makes it difficult to estimate how long a person remains infectious and this period is commonly believed to last until full recovery.

Chlamydia symptoms show up between 1 and 3 weeks after the contraction.

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Leads To Infertility In Women

Several cases of infertility have been observed till now and most of them use to happen just because of untreated Chlamydia. Whenever Chlamydia infection attacks a woman then it often creates trouble at uterus opening. Note that if this condition is ignored so long then bacterium starts traveling towards fallopian tube and then to ovaries.

This disease also causes harm to the hairs around the fallopian tube so the egg is not able to find guidance from ovaries towards womb. Such kind of damage leads to scars and slowly the tube may get blocked. This blockage is a major reason behind infertility. Some professionals have also reported the presence of ectopic pregnancy in Chlamydia affected women so it is really important to get it treated on time so that complications can be avoided.

When Should I See My Healthcare Provider

When it comes to chlamydia, its a good idea to be proactive. Speak with your healthcare provider about your risks of infection. Make a plan to get screened regularly for STIs based on your providers recommendations for how often you should be tested. Make an appointment with your healthcare provider if your partner tests positive for chlamydia or if you notice any signs or symptoms that you may be infected.

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Most Effective Home Based Remedies For Chlamydia

There are so many effective home based remedies that can be used for the complete treatment of Chlamydia

some of these are listed as below:

Letting Partners Know You Have Chlamydia

Sexual partners may be infected too. If you have chlamydia, anyone you have had sex with from the last 6 months needs to be informed, tested and treated.

If they dont know, they could reinfect you or infect someone else if they are not treated. dont receive treatment.

Most people will appreciate being told they may have an infection and it is an important step in preventing further infection in the community.

Your local GP and sexual health centre can help you inform your partners and let them know that they need a test. This process is called partner notification. It can be done anonymously, and your confidentiality is always respected.

You can also anonymously notify your sexual partners of the need to get tested and treated for chlamydia via the Let Them Know website if you feel unable to speak to them personally.

There are also nurses who can help you anonymously notify your partners. They can be contacted on .

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Chlamydia Polymerase Chain Reaction

Test of cure swab specimens collected on day 28, 42 and day 56 will be placed in Cobas® PCR Media and will be tested in batches on COBAS 4800 CT/NG . The remaining eluted DNA from COBAS 4800 will be stored at 80°C until required for further assay. For specimens collected at other time points, swabs collected will be rotated for 30 seconds in 1 ml of phosphate buffered saline and stored at 80°C until further testing required. Specimens will be subsequently extracted with MagNA Pure 96 using 200 l of the cellular suspension in conjunction with the total nucleic acid isolation kit. Eluted nucleic acid of 100 l will be tested as required.

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Treatment For Gonorrhea Is Quick And Easy Too

The CDC currently recommends a shot of the antibiotic Rocephin and an oral dose of the antibiotic azithromycin, given at the same time, to treat gonorrhea.

Treatment recommendations for gonorrhea have changed over the years as the bacteria that causes gonorrhea, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, has become resistant to a growing number of antibiotics.

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Oral Chlamydia: Symptoms Causes Diagnosis And Treatment

Detecting a condition that has no symptoms, like chlamydia in women, comes down to screening. Screening is a way to look for a disease in a person even if they dont have any signs or symptoms of the condition. The United States Preventive Services Task Force recommends screening for chlamydia in sexually active females under 25. For women over 25, screening is only necessary for those at higher risk of infection .

The same recommendations are in place for women who are pregnant. However, pregnant women should also be retested in the third trimester if under age 25 or at increased risk. Screening is important because, in addition to causing infertility, infection with chlamydia can cause issues during pregnancy and in the newborn. During pregnancy, chlamydia may lead to early rupture of the fluid sac containing the fetus and early delivery of the newborn. If the infant is exposed to chlamydia during birth, it can cause pneumonia or conjunctivitis .

How Long Does Azithromycin Take To Cure Chlamydia

It usually takes approximately 7 days for azithromycin to cure chlamydia. However, it can take up to 2 weeks for the infection to go away completely.

Avoid having sex during treatment or until the infection has cleared. Youll want to make sure its completely cured, or else youll risk passing it to someone else.

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Uterus Fallopian Tubes And Ovaries

The most dangerous complication of chlamydial infection in women is pelvic inflammatory disease . PID is when the infection spreads to the internal reproductive organs . In many women, this may not cause symptoms. In others, it can cause :

• Nausea and vomiting

If left untreated, PID can damage the internal reproductive organseven if you dont have symptoms. This damage includes scarring of the fallopian tubes, one cause of infertility. PID also increases the chances of having an ectopic pregnancy. An ectopic pregnancy occurs when a fertilized egg attaches somewhere in the body other than the uterus. If the egg attaches to the fallopian tube, it can cause the fallopian tube to rupture as the egg develops. A ruptured ectopic pregnancy can lead to pain, internal bleeding, shock, and even deathits a medical emergency requiring immediate treatment .

A further complication of PID is a condition called Fitz-Hugh-Curtis syndrome. In Fitz-Hugh-Curtis syndrome, the infection spreads to the lining of the liver, which is called perihepatitis. Over time, this can cause internal scarring and adhesions that, if severe, require surgery to remove. One potential symptom of Fitz-Hugh-Curtis is pain in the upper right side of the abdomen .

How Can I Protect Myself From Chlamydia

Its not always possible to know if a current or potential partner has chlamydia, though, especially since many people with chlamydia never notice symptoms. With prevention in mind, its a good idea to make safer sex practices a regular part of your sex life:

• Dont share sex toys, but if you do, wash them after each use and cover toys used for penetration with a condom.
• Have sex with only one partner, who only has sex with you.

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How Does Chlamydia Affect Pregnancy

For pregnant women, chlamydia may lead to premature birth, or babies born before 37 weeks of pregnancy. Premature birth is the most common cause of infant death and can lead to long-term health and development problems in children.5

Babies born to mothers who have chlamydia can get:

• Infections in their eyes, called conjunctivitis or pinkeye. Signs include discharge from the eyes and swollen eyelids. The signs most often show up within two weeks after birth.
• Pneumonia. Signs include congestion, cough, and rapid or labored breathing, although these are not always present. Signs most often show up one to three months after birth.

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Nucleic Acid Amplification Test

The most common test for chlamydia, this is a simple, non-invasive test during which you collect a swab or urine sample yourself . A doctor can assist in taking a swab if you prefer.

The sample is then sent to be tested to see if there is genetic material that indicates the presence of chlamydia bacteria. Results come back quicker than the traditional culture test.

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How Can I Prevent Getting Chlamydia

Anyone who is sexually active can catch chlamydia. You’re most at risk if you have a new sexual partner or don’t use a barrier method of contraception, such as a condom, when having sex. You can help to prevent the spread of chlamydia by:

• using a dam to cover the female genitals during oral sex or when rubbing female genitals together
• not sharing sex toys. If you do share sex toys, wash them or cover them with a new condom between each person who uses them.

Special Cases: Chlamydia In Infants And Hiv

Newborn infants are also at risk for chlamydial infections if their mother has an untreated infection at the time of delivery. Newborn infants can contract chlamydia trachomatis as they travel through the birth canal and develop eye infections or pneumonia . For this reason, chlamydia testing should be routine during pregnancy.

Having an STI, like chlamydia, can also increase your chances of contracting HIV if you are exposed it to it, or spreading HIV if you are already infected . If you think you have chlamydia, or any STI, it is important for you to seek help immediately from your healthcare provider or an STI clinic. Many clinics provide free or low-cost STI testing. This will all help keep you, your sexual partners, and your community healthy.

Download Clue to track sex and your period.

Article was originally published on June 11, 2018.

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