MAIN Health Diseases STDs Chlamydia

Among 19 to 25-year-olds, chlamydia (pronounced kluh-mid-ee-uh) is one of the most prevalent STDs with an estimated 3 million cases reported each year in the U.S. alone.

Early symptoms - such as vaginal discharge or painful urination - may either be very mild or go completely unnoticed by a majority of those who have the disease, earning chlamydia the nickname "The Silent Epidemic".

Ironically, once a patient is suspected of being infected, chlamydia can be easily diagnosed with a simple urine test, and treatable in a majority of cases with a single course of antibiotics.

What raises most concern among medical professionals, however, is what happens if chlamydia goes untreated.

As the infection begins to travel throughout the body there is risk of developing even more serious condtions, such as pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) or infertility. A pregnant women may also pass the disease onto their newborn child. For anyone who is infected, chlamydia lowers the body's ability to fight off other infections, and more than doubles their risk of HIV if exposed to it.

More about chlamydia around the Web:

Discover more information about the risks and complications associated with this common STD, what other serious conditions may come as a result, along with tips on warning signs & symptoms, and related chlamydia tests & treatments from expert sites around the Web ...

Chlamydia - Excellent online guide to the topic with extensive information & links to related resources on symptoms, causes, advice on when to seek medical care, treatments, related complications and follow-up care.

Chlamydia Tests - Descriptions of common tests for chlamydia via samples of urine or body fluids from infected areas, how to prepare for testing and what it's like, details on how results are determined, plus advice on follow-up care.

Genital Chlamydia - Major focus on other diseases & complications which may result from chlamydia including infertility, ectopic pregnancy, pelvic inflammatory disease, reactive arthritis and HIV.

STD Facts - Chlamydia - Basic fact sheet on the topic covering causes, symptoms, diagnosis, complications, with information on chlamydia's effects on pregnant women and newborns, with links to further facts & statistics from Centers for Disease Control.

STDs - Chlamydia - Teen-friendly overview with facts on who is at risk and how it's transmitted, description of symptoms in teen boys and girls, plus information on what happens if the disease is left untreated, with links to related articles and resources.

It's Your Health - Chlamydia - Health Canada guide with informaton on symptoms, minimzing risk and related links to more on safe sex practices, other common sexually transmitted diseases, and tips on prevention.

Chlamydia Facts - UK guide with information & advice on signs & symptoms in women and men, common tests & diagnosis, when to seek medical care, how it's treated, tips on prevention, with brief related statistics on occurrences in England and Europe.

This information is intended as reference and not as medical advice.
All treatment decisions should be made by medical professionals.