Chlamydia
What is chlamydia?
Chlamydia is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis. It affects both men and women, and it's spread by having sex with a person who has the infection.
What are the consequences of chlamydia?
A big problem with chlamydia is that it often produces no symptoms, and if left undetected and untreated, complications can occur. People who have chlamydia can still transmit the infection, even if they don't have any symptoms themselves.
When symptoms do occur, they usually become noticeable between 4 and 28 days after having sex with an infected person. Women with chlamydia might notice changes with their periods, bleeding or pain during or after sex, pain when urinating, cramping or pain in the lower abdomen, or changes to their vaginal discharge.
Women with untreated chlamydia are at risk of complications such as pelvic inflammatory disease (PID, in which the reproductive organs in the pelvis become inflamed); chronic pelvic pain; ectopic pregnancy (in which a pregnancy develops outside the uterus, such as in the fallopian tubes); and infertility, due to infection and scarring of the fallopian tubes.
Men with chlamydia are at risk of infections that can result in swollen and sore testicles, discharge from the urethra (the tube through which urination occurs) and difficulty urinating or pain when urinating.
Having oral sex or anal sex with someone who has the infection can result in infection of the throat or the rectum, causing pain and a discharge of pus or mucus.
Pregnant women who are infected can pass the infection to their baby during birth, which could result in the baby developing conjunctivitis and pneumonia.
How do I know if I have chlamydia?
If you don't have any symptoms, but are worried you might have chlamydia, talk to your doctor. In most cases, your doctor can perform a simple urine test to diagnose the infection. A swab test, which involves taking a specimen from a site such as the penis or cervix, may also be performed.
What do I do if I have been diagnosed with chlamydia?
If your doctor does detect chlamydia, don't worry: the infection can be treated easily with antibiotics. As chlamydia is transmitted through unprotected sex, your doctor may suggest you be screened for other sexually transmitted diseases and if necessary, you and your partner(s) treated.
It's important that you inform any recent sexual partners you may have had that they might be at risk of chlamydia. Remember, they might not display any symptoms but if they are not informed about their risk of chlamydia, they could develop serious conditions such as pelvic inflammatory disease, as well as continue to spread the infection to others.
You can also help prevent being infected with chlamydia (and other sexually transmitted infections) by using a condom when you have sex, particularly if you have more than one sexual partner.
Remember, many people with chlamydia don't know they have it.
Last Reviewed: 23 November 2009
- 1. Chlamydia - CDC fact sheet [website]. Atlanta: Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Updated 2007, Dec 20. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/STD/chlamydia/STDFact-Chlamydia.htm (accessed 2009, Nov 27)
