Common Chlamydia Q&A

Who is at risk?
Anyone who has been sexually active is at risk of getting chlamydia. It is most common at the ages when people are most likely to change partners, with about 1 in 10 twenty year-olds infected at any time. By the age of 40, at least one-third to half of all women – and men – will have had it at some time. The number of new cases has doubled in the past 5 years – probably because more people are being tested, with more accurate tests.

Who should get tested for chlamydia?
You should be tested for chlamydia once a year if you are:
- 25 or younger and have sex
- Older than 25 and:
- Have a new sex partner
- Have more than one sex partner
- Have sex with someone who has other sex partners
- Have had chlamydia or another STI in the past
- Have traded sex for money or drugs
- Do not use condoms during sex within a relationship that is not mutually monogamous, meaning you or your partner has sex with other people
- Pregnant
- You also should be tested if you have any symptoms of chlamydia.

How long does it take to get results?
This will depend on the method used to diagnose the infection. The turn-around time for a culture is typically 5 to 7 days. Other methods can give results in one day, taking several hours. With the Rapid Home Bio Chlamydia test,  the easy to read result will develop after ten minutes and you will learn if you have a Chlamydia infection or not. The test kits are the same as those used by doctors and other healthcare professionals to screen for infection with Chlamydia. The test is specific for Chlamydia trachomatis bacteria and has an accuracy greater than 99.8%.

How Can I get Chlamydia?
You can get genital chlamydia infection during oral, vaginal, or anal sexual contact with a partner that is affected. An infant can get chlamydia from an infected mother during pregnancy.

What should I do if I have chlamydia?
Chlamydia is easy to treat. But you should be tested and treated right away to protect your reproductive health. If you have chlamydia:
-See a doctor right away. Women with chlamydia are 5 times more likely to get HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, from an infected partner.
- Follow your doctor's orders and finish all your antibiotics. Even if symptoms go away, you need to finish all the medicine.
- Don't engage in any sexual activity while being treated for chlamydia.
- Tell your sex partner(s) so they can be treated.
- See your doctor again if your symptoms don't go away within 1 to 2 weeks after finishing the medicine.
- See your doctor again within 3 to 4 months for another chlamydia test. This is most important if your sex partner was not treated or if you have a new sex partner.

Doctors, local health departments, and STI and family planning clinics have information about STIs. And they can all test you for chlamydia. Don't assume your doctor will test you for chlamydia when you have your Pap test. Take care of yourself by asking for a chlamydia test.


Can infection with chlamydia lead to other health problems?
Yes. Chlamydia infections can lead to other serious health problems. When left untreated, chlamydia can increase the risk of acquiring HIV. It affects men and women differently.
In women, untreated chlamydia can spread into the pelvic area and infect the uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries–leading to pelvic inflammatory disease. Chlamydia may cause permanent damage to the woman's reproductive organs and can lead to infertility, chronic pelvic pain, and an increased risk of ectopic pregnancy.
Pregnant woman with chlamydia are at risk of spontaneous abortion (miscarriage).
In men, untreated chlamydia can affect the testicles and ultimately lead to infertility.

Why is chlamydia so widespread?
Most people – around 8 out of 10 – are unaware that they have the infection. There are rarely any obvious symptoms, so it can remain undetected for many years. Put simply: if you have, or have had, chlamydia, you probably wouldn’t know it, and nor would your partner, so most people who have chlamydia get it from someone else who didn’t know they had it! Thus chlamydia is widespread precisely because it can be silent.

How does chlamydia cause an ectopic pregnancy?
Anything which damages the fallopian tubes – such as endometriosis or previous pelvic surgery – can cause ectopic pregnancy. Chlamydia causes inflammation within the tubes, damaging the tiny hairs which waft the eggs down the tube. The egg gets stuck and this is how an ectopic pregnancy occurs.