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Gynaecologic Problems: Chlamydia
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Description
Chlamydial infection is caused by the bacteria Chlamydia trachomatis .
Chlamydia is the leading sexually transmitted disease (STD) in the United
States today, with an estimated 4 million new cases occurring each year.
A pregnant woman may pass the infection to her newborn during delivery.
Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), a serious complication of chlamydial
infection, has emerged as a major cause of infertility of women of childbearing
age.
Chlamydia is spread during sexual intercourse via the exchange of bodily
fluids through mucous membranes in the anus, mouth, and genital areas.
Symptoms and Signs
Men and women with chlamydial infections may experience abnormal genital
discharge or pain during urination. These early symptoms may be absent
or very mild, but if they occur, they will do so within 1 to 3 weeks of
exposure. However, half of infected women and 25 % of infected men may
have no symptoms whatsoever. As a result, the disease is often not diagnosed
until complications develop. In addition to , chlamydia can cause an inflamed rectum and .
The bacteria have also been found in the throat as a result of oral sexual
contact with an infected partner.
Diagnosis and Treatment
Chlamydia is easily confused with gonorrhoea because the symptoms of
both diseases are similar, and because they often occur together. Until
recently, the only way to diagnose chlamydia was to take a sample of secretions
from a patient’s genital area and culture the organism in special
tissue culture in the laboratory. While still the most definitive test,
it is expensive and technically difficult. Results can take up to 3 days.
More recently, however, several rapid tests that use sophisticated techniques
and a dye to detect bacterial proteins have been developed and are a readily
available test for chlamydial infection.
Chlamydia is curable with certain antibiotics like tetracycline, erthyromicin,
and azithromycin (but not penicillin, as is the case for other STDs).
It is very important that a person with chlamydial infection take all
of the prescribed medication, even after symptoms disappear.
The information in this page is presented in summarised form and has been taken
from the following source(s):
1.
The National Women's Health Information Center (NWHIC) FAQs:
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Introduction
