Chlamydia-Topic Overview

Chlamydia Topics

• Topic Overview
• Cause
• Symptoms
• What Happens
• What Increases Your Risk
• When To Call a Doctor
• Exams and Tests
• Treatment Overview
• Prevention
• Home Treatment
• Medications
• Surgery
• Other Places To Get Help
• Related Information
• References
• Credits

Chlamydia - Topic Overview

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Antibiotics are used to treat chlamydia. It's important to take all of the medicine as directed. Otherwise the medicine may not work. Both sex partners need treatment to keep from passing the infection back and forth.

As soon as you find out you have chlamydia, be sure to let your sex partners know. Experts recommend that you notify everyone you've had sex with in the past 2 months. If you have not had sex in the past 2 months, contact the last person you had sex with.

Having a chlamydia infection that was cured does not protect you from getting it again. If you are treated and your sex partner is not, you probably will get it again.

Some people who have chlamydia also have other STIs, such as gonorrhea.

Finding out that you have an STI may make you feel bad about yourself or about sex. Counseling or a support group may help you feel better.

It's easier to prevent an STI like chlamydia than it is to treat it:

• Don't 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. Don't 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.

Learning about chlamydia:	What is chlamydia? What causes it? What are the symptoms? What increases my risk of getting it? What other health problems could chlamydia cause? When do I need to see my doctor?
Being diagnosed:	How is chlamydia diagnosed? What tests will I need? Do I need to see a specialist?
Getting treatment:	What treatment will I need? Do I need to take medicine? Will treatment cure me?
Ongoing concerns:	Will chlamydia come back?
Living with chlamydia:	How will my sexual relationships be affected? What are common feelings about having chlamydia?