STDs & Symptoms
What Is Chlamydia?
Chlamydia is a common bacterial STD that is easily curable with prescription antibiotics. It is caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis and is the most commonly reported STD in the U.S. An estimated 2.86 million Americans get chlamydia each year.
Most people who have chlamydia do not show any symptoms, but this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get tested. If chlamydia is left untreated, it can cause irreversible damage to your reproductive system or even infertility.
Take Charge of Your Health
At least 50% of the time, chlamydia has no symptoms in men and women which contributes to the disease being extremely common and easily spread. It can be easily cured with antibiotics; get tested today if you think you may have been exposed.
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Chlamydia Symptoms in Women
Most infected women do not experience symptoms.
Chlamydia symptoms in women can include:
- Yellow vaginal discharge
- Vaginal swelling
- Pain during sex
- Pain or burning when peeing
- Frequent urge to pee
- Bleeding between periods or after sex
- Pain during sex
Chlamydia Symptoms in Men
When symptoms do occur in men, they may include a thick, yellow-white, milky or watery discharge from the penis and/or a burning sensation during urination. Pain and swelling in the testes may also occur, although such symptoms are less common. It is more common for men to experience symptoms. However, many do not.
Chlamydia symptoms in men can include:
- Watery/milky discharge or pus from the penis
- Pain or burning when peeing
- Pain or itching in the urethra (the tube that carries urine out of the body)
- Pain and swelling in one or both of the testicles
Symptoms in the Throat, Anus, and Eye
Both men and women can get chlamydia in the throat from oral sex, or the anus from anal sex with an infected partner. Most of the time, these conditions do not cause any symptoms.
Though less common, people can get chlamydia in the eye when infected semen, pre-cum, or vaginal secretions come into contact with the eye. This can happen during direct content or by rubbing your eye without washing your hands.
Signs of chlamydia in the throat can include:
- Sore throat
- Swollen lymph nodes in the neck
- Fever
- Redness in the throat
Signs of anal chlamydia can include:
- Pain or itching in the anus
- Anal discharge or bleeding
- Anal swelling
- Diarrhea
Signs of chlamydia in the eye can include:
- Redness
- Discharge
- Swollen eyelids
- Itching and irritation
If you or your sexual partner have any of these symptoms, you should stop having oral, vaginal, and anal sex until you can get tested and find out what’s going on. Visit your doctor or get tested at a local std testing center.
Chlamydia Complications
If you don’t seek treatment to clear chlamydia, it may lead to long-term and serious health problems, even if you are not experiencing symptoms. Also, if someone with a chlamydia infection has sex with a partner who has HIV, the inflammation caused by chlamydia can increase the risk of contracting HIV³.
Untreated Chlamydia Symptoms in Women
In women, untreated chlamydia can spread from the cervix (the passageway from the vagina to the uterus) up to the urethra (urine canal), the uterus (womb), and fallopian tubes (the passageway that carries eggs from the ovaries to the uterus). This can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), damaging the tissue of the reproductive organs. PID may cause chronic pelvic pain, dangerous ectopic pregnancy, or infertility.4
Complications During Pregnancy
If you’re a pregnant woman with chlamydia, you can pass the infection to your baby during delivery. This can cause eye infections and pneumonia and make you more likely to give birth too early. This is why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends getting tested for chlamydia early on in your pregnancy, especially if you are someone who is at risk₅.
How Often Should You Test for Chlamydia?
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends at least yearly chlamydia screenings for:4
- Women under 25
- Women older than 25 if they have risk factors like new or multiple sex partners or partners with an STD
The CDC also recommends that pregnant women get tested for chlamydia. All pregnant women should be screened for chlamydia during their first prenatal visit. Retesting in the third trimester is recommended for pregnant women younger than 25.
What Is Chlamydia Prevention?
Abstinence is the only way to be sure you will not get chlamydia or any other STD. However, if you do have sex, there are ways to reduce your risk. There are legitimate questions to ask, like, “Do condoms prevent chlamydia?” There are many different precautions you can take to protect yourself from this infection. Several different barrier options are on the market today, like condoms for penetrative sex and dental dams for oral sex. Also, latex gloves are an option as an extra protective measure for any touching.
You can decrease your risk of contracting chlamydia by:
- Use a latex condom or dental dam every time you have oral, vaginal, or anal sex
- Being in a mutually monogamous relationship with someone who has tested negative
- Limiting the number of sexual partners
- Avoiding douching, which can decrease good vaginal bacteria and increase the risk of infection
If you or your partner(s) have symptoms or you think you may be infected, get tested before having sex again. If you test positive and get treated, you should notify your current and recent sex partners so they can get checked and treated too. Wait until all symptoms have cleared. The doctor will advise you to take the antibiotics until they run out. The CDC recommends getting tested 3 months after successful treatment with prescribed antibiotics.
Speaking openly with your partner(s) about sexual health and getting regularly tested (even when you don’t have symptoms) helps you know your status and protect your health. If you are in a mutually monogamous relationship, then getting tested once a year is adequate. However, if you are sexually active with multiple people, then getting tested every 3 to 6 months is better due to the frequency of partners.
Is Chlamydia Curable?
Chlamydia will go away with the right medications. For both males and females, treatment is the same. The infection is curable when taking antibiotics that only a healthcare provider can prescribe to you. You’ll likely be prescribed azithromycin or doxycycline. Azithromycin is taken as one 1g dose, then a 500g pill for two days. Doxycycline is an entire week, every day.
RESOURCES
- “Chlamydia – CDC Fact Sheet (Detailed).” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/std/chlamydia/stdfact-chlamydia-detailed.htm
- “Is Chlamydia Only Caught Through Sexual Contact?” National Health Service U.K. https://www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/sexual-health/is-chlamydia-only-caught-through-sexual-contact/
- “How STDs Impact Women Differently From Men.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/nchhstp/newsroom/docs/factsheets/stds-women.pdf?s_CID=tw_STD0170644
- “Screening Recommendations and Considerations Referenced in Treatment Guidelines and Original Sources.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/std/chlamydia/treatment.htm
Medically Reviewed by J. Frank Martin JR., MD on March 28, 2022
Written by STD Check Editorial Team on March 23, 2022
