How Long Can You Have Chlamydia And Not Know It

Why Long Can You Have Chlamydia Before It Causes Damage

Chlamydia trachomatis is a bacterial disease that gets transmitted easily to the private parts and takes only 1 or 3 weeks to show its symptoms. In most cases, the infected person is asymptomatic that means no resemblance of symptoms. As it is a sexually transmitted disease it affects the private parts and if they are left untreated it leads to severe conditions in both men and women.

The disease can spread from genitals to the main reproductive systems including fallopian tubes, uterus causing swelling. When the infection is severe it leads to Cervicitis, Urethritis, and Proctitis. These conditions are common in both men and women.

There are even other certain consequences when chlamydia is left untreated which include Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, Tubal factor infertility, Ectopic pregnancies, and chronic pelvic pain. Sometimes the effect of this disease can result in women not getting pregnant. Though Chlamydia is an STD it gets cured by treating it with antibiotics which are called antibiotic therapy.

Azithromycin, Doxycycline is the most commonly prescribed antibiotics to the infected ones by doctors. In the initial stages of chlamydia one dose of 1g followed by 500mg Azithromycin is prescribed to take once a day for two days. And the Doxycycline is directed to take every day for a week. To get cured it takes only one week by following directions of the doctors and avoiding sex for that period.

How Is Chlamydia Diagnosed

The most common test for chlamydia is called a nucleic acid amplification test . Your provider takes a sample of fluid by doing a vaginal/cervical swab or collecting a urine sample. Then, they send the sample off to a lab to check for the bacteria that causes chlamydia. Your provider may do the test in an office, or they may ask you to do an at-home chlamydia test. Follow your providers instructions carefully to ensure you get accurate test results.

Because most chlamydia cases are asymptomatic, its important to get screened for chlamydia even if you dont notice any signs of infection. The CDC recommends that sexually active cisgender women who are high-risk for chlamydia get screened regularly. Women, more so than men, experience the most severe complications from chlamydia. Transgender men and nonbinary individuals with vaginas should be screened regularly, too, as they can experience the same complications of chlamydia.

Youre considered high-risk if you:

• Are under 25.
• Have had chlamydia infections previously.

Cisgender men, or trans and nonbinary individuals with penises, should be screened for chlamydia if:

• They live in a setting where chlamydia spreads frequently, like correctional facilities, adolescent clinics and sexual health clinics.
• They have sex with other men.

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When Should Someone Seek Medical Care For Chlamydia

The most urgent time to seek medical care for a chlamydial infection is when an individual is pregnant and has had recent sexual exposure to an infected individual and/or has developed early symptoms of a chlamydial infection. Additionally, if individuals are experiencing any symptoms of chlamydial infections, they should seek medical care quickly. Sexual partners should be notified if they have had recent contact with an infected individual.

Patients with gonorrhea have a 30%-50% chance of being coinfected with chlamydia. However, the reverse is not true. Patients with chlamydial infections have a less than 1% chance of being coinfected with Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

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How Do I Test For Chlamydia

If you think you’re at risk of having chlamydia or have any symptoms you should get tested as soon as possible. You can have a test even if you do not have symptoms.

Getting tested for chlamydia is easy and doesnt hurt. A healthcare professional will ask for a urine sample or take a swab from the area that might be infected, such as inside the vagina or inside the anus. If youve had anal or oral sex, you may have a swab taken from your anus or throat.

In some countries you can get a self-testing kit to do at home.

Its important to regularly test for chlamydia, even if you dont have any symptoms. Being treated as soon as possible will reduce your risk of developing any serious or long-term complications.

Chlamydia Is Only Contagious From Person To Person

You can only get chlamydia by having intimate sexual contact with an infected person, not from casual contact, touching another persons clothing, or consuming contaminated food or water.

The chlamydia organism lives only in human cells and cannot be transmitted by external contact, such as towels or toilet seats, Schaffir says.

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How Can You Prevent Chlamydia

Whether or not youâve had chlamydia before, you can take simple actions to protect your sexual health going forward.

• Unprotected sex is one of the main ways this STD is transmitted, so use protection every time you have sex.
• Routinely screen for STDs like chlamydia .
• If you have a new sex partner, consider talking with them about both of you getting tested so you can enjoy physical intimacy with greater peace of mind.
• Speak with your healthcare providerâand consider getting testedâif youâre experiencing symptoms of this or any other STD.

To easily test for chlamydia from the privacy of home, take the Everlywell at-home Chlamydia & Gonorrhea Test. You can also check for 6 common sexually transmitted infections with the Everlywell at-home STD Test for men or women.

Chlamydia Symptoms And Treatment

Chlamydia usually has no symptoms meaning most people with the infection do not know they have it. It is passed on through vaginal, anal and oral sex without a condom or sharing unwashed sex toys with someone who has the infection.

If left untreated for a long time it can lead to serious health problems, if discovered early it is easily treated with a short course of antibiotics.

• The basics

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Who To Test For Chlamydia

Anyone with the following genital symptoms should not have sex until they see a healthcare provider:

• A discharge
• A burning sensation when peeing
• Unusual sores, or a rash

Anyone having oral, anal, or vaginal sex with a partner recently diagnosed with an STD should see a healthcare provider.

Because chlamydia usually has no symptoms, screening is necessary to identify most infections. Screening programs can reduce rates of adverse sequelae in women.31,41 CDC recommends yearly chlamydia screening of all sexually active women younger than 25. CDC also recommends screening for older women with risk factors, such as new or multiple partners, or a sex partner who has a sexually transmitted infection.40 Screen and treat those who are pregnant as noted in How does chlamydia affect a pregnant person and their baby? Women who are sexually active should discuss their risk factors with a healthcare provider to determine if more frequent screening is necessary.

Routine screening is not necessary for men. However, consider screening sexually active young men in clinical settings with a high prevalence of chlamydia. This can include adolescent clinics, correctional facilities, and STD clinics. Consider this when resources permit and do not hinder screening efforts in women.40

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People can get infected with chlamydia even when they use the same sex toys as the infected. The bacteria move from one body to another and infect them through bodily fluids. Though people get afraid as soon as they hear the word chlamydia, it is treatable and with the right treatment methods, it can be easily cured.

When chlamydia is left untreated, it can lead to very severe complications and can become very dangerous. Anybody who is sexually active is exposed to chlamydia.

People of all age groups and gender can get affected with chlamydia since chlamydia spreads through semen and vaginal fluid when two people of any gender have sexual intercourse. When a person is infected with chlamydia, and they have sexual intercourse with a person of another gender, they could infect them easily through the transfer of bodily fluids.

Most of the time, if a pregnant mother is infected with chlamydia, it will be passed on to the newborn or the unborn child. Hence, it is very important to get it treated as soon as a person notices the symptoms.

One thing about chlamydia is that the symptoms of chlamydia lie dormant for more than three weeks without exhibiting themselves. Until and unless the infection is severe, people dont actually notice that they are infected with chlamydia.

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Chlamydia Is Common But Many People Dont Realize They Have It

About 1.7 million chlamydia infections were reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2017, but the real number is likely higher because chlamydia is considered an underreported infection.

The number of reported cases is substantially lower than the true estimated incidence, says Bradley Stoner, MD, PhD, associate professor of medicine at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and former president of the American Sexually Transmitted Diseases Association.

The National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System relies on state and local public health departments to collect and report data on chlamydia to the CDC. Those public health departments depend on individual physicians, hospitals, and laboratories to report cases of chlamydia to them. Accurate statistics require all parties to routinely comply with disease-reporting mandates.

Chlamydia: Symptoms Diagnosis Treatmen

Chlamydia doesnt usually cause any symptoms. So you may not realize that you have it. People with chlamydia who have no symptoms can still pass the disease to others. If you do have symptoms, they may not appear until several weeks after you have sex with an infected partner. Symptoms in women includ Often, people with chlamydia do not show any signs or symptoms of the infection. Therefore, chlamydia can be spread easily, since chlamydia carriers typically do not realize they have it. Which is why getting tested for chlamydia is so important. If symptoms appear, they typically occur within 2-21 days after exposure

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What Foods Cause Vulvodynia

Soy, goat dairy, and gluten all caused flare ups of her vulvodynia throughout the process. Eliminating those items and supplementing with magnesium, vitamin D3, probiotics, vitamin B12, and omega-3 allowed the patient to be symptom free of both vulvodynia and IBS for 6 months post-treatment.

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What Can Happen If Chlamydia Isnt Treated

Untreated chlamydia can put your health at risk. Make an appointment with your provider immediately if you notice any symptoms of chlamydia, and get regular STI screenings to avoid complications later.

Complications of chlamydia for people with vaginas

Untreated chlamydia can cause:

• Pelvic inflammatory disease . PID is a serious condition that requires hospitalization. It can occur when an untreated STI, like chlamydia, damages your reproductive organs. PID can lead to infertility and chronic pelvic pain. It can also cause an ectopic pregnancy,which is life-threatening for the fetus and potentially deadly for the mother or gestational parent, too.
• Pregnancy complications. An untreated infection can lead to pre-term delivery. Also, if youre pregnant and have chlamydia, you can pass the infection on to your newborn. Babies born with chlamydia may have pneumonia or conjunctivitis that could lead to blindness if not treated.

Complications of chlamydia for people with penises

Untreated chlamydia can cause:

• Epididymitis. Infection can spread to the testicles and the tube that carries sperm to your testicles , causing symptoms like pain, swelling and tenderness in your testicles.
• Reduced fertility. Chlamydia can harm your sperm, negatively impacting your ability to conceive.

Complications of chlamydia that can affect all genders

Untreated chlamydia can:

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What Problems Can Happen

If its not treated, chlamydia can lead to:

• in girls: pelvic inflammatory disease , which can damage the reproductive system, making it hard or impossible for a woman to get pregnant later on
• in guys: swelling in the testicles and tubes at the back of the testicles, possibly preventing a man from fathering kids later on
• joint problems

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How Does One Get Chlamydia

Chlamydia is spread through sexual contact with an infected partner. It can be spread through any type of unprotected sex, including penis in vagina sex, anal sex, and oral sex . An eye infection, conjunctivitis, can also be acquired through contact with genital fluids infected with chlamydia.

A person can also be re-infected with chlamydia after having been treated previously. People donât become immune to chlamydia after theyâve had it once.

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How Can I Prevent Chlamydia

Its easier to prevent an STI like chlamydia than it is to treat it:

• Dont have more than one sex partner at a time. The safest sex is with one partner who has sex only with you. Every time you add a new sex partner, you are being exposed to all of the infections that all of their partners may have.
• Use a condom every time you have sex. Latex and polyurethane condoms keep out the viruses and bacteria that cause STIs.
• Be responsible. Dont have sex if you have symptoms of an infection or if you are being treated for an STI.
• Wait to have sex with a new partner until both of you have been tested for STIs.

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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What Complications Can Result From Chlamydial Infection

The initial damage that chlamydia causes often goes unnoticed. However, chlamydial infections can lead to serious health problems with both short- and long-term consequences.

In women, untreated chlamydia can spread into the uterus or fallopian tubes and cause pelvic inflammatory disease . Symptomatic PID occurs in about 10 to 15 percent of women with untreated chlamydia.30,31 However, chlamydia can also cause subclinical inflammation of the upper genital tract . Both acute and subclinical PID can cause permanent damage to the fallopian tubes, uterus, and surrounding tissues. The damage can lead to chronic pelvic pain, tubal factor infertility, and potentially fatal ectopic pregnancy.32,33

Some patients with chlamydial PID develop perihepatitis, or Fitz-Hugh-Curtis Syndrome, an inflammation of the liver capsule and surrounding peritoneum, which is associated with right upper quadrant pain.

In pregnant women, untreated chlamydia has been associated with pre-term delivery,34 as well as ophthalmia neonatorum and pneumonia in the newborn.

Reactive arthritis can occur in men and women following symptomatic or asymptomatic chlamydial infection, sometimes as part of a triad of symptoms formerly referred to as Reiters Syndrome.35

Q2 What Happens If Chlamydia Goes Untreated For 6 Months

If chlamydia goes untreated for months, then a person might start facing different complications. Chlamydia and infertility are very closely linked to each other. So, if someone goes untreated for as long as 6 months, that person might face some complications like PID , which can cause infertility. Apart from that, it can also cause other issues like tubal pregnancies, chronic pelvic pain, and others.

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Question : Can You Get Chlamydia From Kissing

Chlamydia cannot be passed on through casual contact such as kissing and hugging, or from sharing baths, towels, pools, toilet seats or cutlery.STIs are only transmitted via infected fluids or in the case of herpes, skin-to-skin contact through small cuts in the body and cant live outside the human body for long periods without breaking down.

Chlamydia Infection May Have Long

For women, the long-term effects of an untreated chlamydia infection may include:

• Severe infection with pain and fever requiring a hospital stay
• Pelvic inflammatory disease, an infection of the upper reproductive tract
• Scarring in the reproductive tract that causes infertility
• Higher risk of ectopic pregnancy

Men are less likely than women to have major health problems linked to chlamydia, although they can develop epididymitis, an inflammation of a structure within the testicles called the epididymis that can result in infertility.

A chlamydia infection can sometimes result in reactive arthritis in both men and women.

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How Is Chlamydia Diagnosed And Treated

If you have chlamydia symptoms or had intercourse with someone without protection, you should inform your doctor about testing or take a home chlamydia test.

Chlamydia can be detected at home. You should get a chlamydia test kit and use urine for your test.

However, if you have oral chlamydia symptoms, you may need to see your doctor for throat swab culture. The culture of chlamydia takes about 3 7 days.

If diagnosed with chlamydia, you can easily be treated and cured with azithromycin or doxycycline tablets.

During pregnancy, chlamydia infection can be treated safely with azithromycin.