Is it possible to have chlamydia for many years and never have symptoms?

Question

Is it possible to have chlamydia for many years and never have any symptoms? Once someone is infected, what is the typical amount of time before you would notice symptoms, if any? What are the symptoms?

Answer 1

Sexual Health:
Chlamydia

Chlamydia is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases in the U.S. This infection is easily spread because it often causes no symptoms and may be unknowingly passed to sexual partners. In fact, about 75% of infections in women and 50% in men are without symptoms.

How Do I Know if I Have Chlamydia?

It is not easy to tell if you are infected with chlamydia since symptoms are not always apparent. But when they do occur, they are usually noticeable within 1-3 weeks of contact and can include the following:

Symptoms in Women

Abnormal vaginal discharge that may have an odor
Bleeding between periods
Painful periods
Abdominal pain with fever
Pain when having sex
Itching or burning in or around the vagina
Pain when urinating
Symptoms in Men

Small amounts of clear or cloudy discharge from the tip of the penis
Painful urination
Burning and itching around the opening of the penis
Pain and swelling around the testicles
How Is Chlamydia Diagnosed?

There are a few different tests your doctor can use to check for chlamydia. He or she will probably use a swab to take a sample from the urethra in men or from the cervix in women and then will send the specimen to a laboratory to be analyzed. There are also other tests which check a urine sample for the presence of the bacteria.

How Is Chlamydia Treated?

If you have chlamydia, your doctor will prescribe oral antibiotics, usually azithromycin (Zithromax) or doxycycline. Your doctor will also recommend your partner(s) be treated as well to prevent reinfection and further spread of the disease.

With treatment, the infection should clear up in about a week or two. It is important to finish all of your antibiotics even if you feel better.

Women with severe infection may require hospitalization, intravenous antibiotics (medicine given through a vein), and pain medicine.

After taking antibiotics, people should be retested to be sure the infection is cured. This is particularly important if you are unsure that your partner(s) obtained treatment. Do not have sex until you are sure both you and your partner no longer have the disease.

What Happens If I Don't Get Treated?

If you do not get treated for Chlamydia, you run the risk of several health problems.


For women. If left untreated, the infection can cause pelvic inflammatory disease which can lead to damage of the fallopian tubes (the tubes connecting the ovaries to the uterus) or even cause infertility (the inability to have children), and untreated chlamydia infection could increase the risk of ectopic pregnancy (when the fertilized egg implants and develops outside the uterus.) Furthermore, chlamydia may cause premature births (giving birth too early) and the infection can be passed along from the mother to her child during childbirth, causing an eye infection, blindness or pneumonia in the newborn.

For men. Chlamydia can cause a condition called nongonococcal urethritis (NGU) - an infection of the urethra (the tube by which men and women pass urine), epididymitis - an infection of the epididymis (the tube that carries sperm away from the testes) or proctitis - an inflammation of the rectum.

How Can I Prevent Infection?

To reduce your risk of infection:

Use condoms correctly every time you have sex.
Limit the number of sex partners, and do not go back and forth between partners.
Practice sexual abstinence, or limit sexual contact to one uninfected partner.
If you think you are infected, avoid sexual contact and see a doctor.

Any genital symptoms such as discharge or burning during urination or an unusual sore or rash should be a signal to stop having sex and to consult a doctor immediately. If you are told you have chlamydia or any other STD and receive treatment, you should notify all of your recent sex partners so that they can see a doctor and be treated.

Because chlamydia often occurs without symptoms, people who are infected may unknowingly infect their sex partners. Many doctors recommend that all persons who have more than one sex partner should be tested for chlamydia regularly, even in the absence of symptoms.

Answer 2

Yes. Many people never do develop symptoms. Men particularly are often asymptomatic, they can pass it on to an unknowing partner, who doesn't suspect they have an STD.

Some people don't know they have it until they find out they can't get pregnant, and are then diagnosed with Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) and are now infertile. Untreated chlamydia can lead to PID.

Symptoms are the same as most vaginal infections: runny and *excess* discharge (usually yellow or off white, not "cottage-cheese like" as in a yeast infection, and green is usually a sign of Trich.), burning, and pain. Pain while urinating sometimes occurs. Painful menstrual cramps can also occur. Some people with bacterial vaginal infections have spotting between periods.

In PID, this can be a serious and life-threatening infection. You can develop severe chills and lower abdominal (pelvic) pain.

The point is, although you *may* have symptoms, the symptoms may be non-specific or non-existent, so you need to go to the doctor to be tested to really know. Do not ever rely on symptoms when it comes to STD's. If you have it, your partner should be treated as well, so you do not get reinfected.

It is very easy to treat if caught early. Once PID occurs, it may become a chronic condition that can affect fertility and cause scar tissue. See your doc. soon for a test.

Answer 3

If you had Chlamydia for two years you would most likely have severe pain. While it takes longer to have symptoms in women, women usually will display symptoms within 4 months. There should be a slight yellowish discharge detectable on toilet tissue. There are other std's that might not present symptoms for a while.

Answer 4

Yes it is quite possible and probable to have chlamydia for years before it is detected. The symtoms of the infection are mild to unnoticeable, which is why it is refered to as a silent infection. How long it takes to cause problems which require medical care are highly variable. In women, it is detected by doing a specific test for the disease. The test is done if you complain of pelvic problems, though sometimes it is done in conjunction with a pap smear if you want. In most cases it is not detected in a woman until she develops pelvic pain or menstrual cycle problems, or needs fertility evaluation. By the time it is detected, it is nearly impossible to actually determine when you were infected or by whom. Even if you have been faithful to only one partner, the partner could have been infected by another years before you met- so infection doesn't prove infidelity either. If you are worried, make an appointment to see your GYN and request the test be done. It's simple and painless, and straightforward to treat. The sooner it is treated, the better off you will be. If you test positive, the doctor can give you all the information you need at that time, or you can search the web yourself for loads of information.

Answer 5

I'm no expert, but I seem to recall reading that exact thing about that exact disease somewhere once. Apparently, this is more likely with men than it is with women though, from what I recall, since the symptoms (whatever they were) are more clearly visible with women mostly.
But to answer your question, yes it's very possible.

For the symptoms, I'd have to refer you to do a simple Google on the subject.

Cheers.

Answer 6

Yes it is possible. Many women and men don't have symptoms. I think its about 80% don't have symptoms. Thats why it is important to get your annual exam.

Answer 7

yes thats y u should go to your doctor at least once a yr or as often as you switch partners,i don't know the symptoms

Answer 8

1

Answer 9

if you suspect you have it go to the doctor and stop fooling about with us.