Can you have chlamydia for years and not know it?

Anita Ravi, MD, MPH, MSHP, a practicing family physician in New York City, urges physicians to make STI screenings a routine part of patient care so as to help catch and treat chlamydia, which can have long term health repercussions if not treated. “You could have chlamydia for years and not know it,” Ravi says.

Can chlamydia go unnoticed for years?

Chlamydia can lie dormant in the body for many years causing a low grade infection without symptoms. It could potentially flare up to cause a symptomatic infection, especially if there is an alteration in the persons immune system, such as a severe cold or flu, cancer or some other severe illness.

Can you have chlamydia for 9 years and not know?

The majority of people who have chlamydia aren't aware of any signs or symptoms, even after several months or years with infection. Nonetheless the impact of untreated chlamydia can be serious for women, causing significant damage to the reproductive organs.

Can you go 5 years without knowing you have chlamydia?

Chlamydia is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases in the UK. In 2018 alone, 49% of all new diagnoses of STDs were Chlamydia. A possible reason for this is that the Chlamydia can lay dormant for many years without the carrier knowing.

Can chlamydia be undetected for 20 years?

Although some symptoms can appear within weeks of contact, there have been reports of chlamydia remaining dormant for over twenty years.

Chlamydia | Top 5 Symptoms Experienced by Men and Women

Can you have an STD for 10 years and not know?

Symptoms can develop within a few days or weeks, but sometimes they do not appear until months or even years later. Often there are few or no symptoms and you may not know you have an STI. If there's any chance you have an STI, go to a sexual health clinic or GP for a free and confidential check-up.

Can you have chlamydia for 10 years?

How long can you have chlamydia for? An untreated chlamydia infection can persist for several years. Although this goes for both men and women, it is believed that men are less likely to carry the bacteria for several years. If you remain infected for a long time you have an increased risk of complications.

Can an STD lay dormant for 20 years?

There are STDs that can lie dormant and you can continue to be asymptomatic for years. The most important STD to test for in this regard is HIV, which can lie dormant for many years. Anyone who has ever had unprotected sex should consider getting this blood test.

Can chlamydia be treated after 3 years?

Nope! Chlamydia is easily cured with antibiotics. Chlamydia is a bacterial infection (like strep throat or an ear infection), which means that once you've been treated and tested negative for it (to make sure the antibiotics worked), it's gone.

Can chlamydia come back after 15 years?

Thankfully, it's also curable. But new research suggests that for some people, curing chlamydia doesn't prevent reinfection, even if they're not exposed to it again. Apparently the disease can live inside your gut, and reinfect you out of the blue.

How did I get chlamydia if I didnt cheat?

Apart from being infected at birth you can not catch chlamydia without performing some form of sexual act. However, you don't have to have penetrative sex to get infected, it is enough if your genitals come in contact with an infected person's sexual fluids (for example if your genitals touch).

Will dormant chlamydia show up test?

A significant number of men do not typically show symptoms for STDs such as chlamydia although they are very capable of spreading the disease. Even though they are generally asymptomatic or dormant, they will still test positive for the STD. Most STDs that are in a dormant stage can be detected with a test.

How long can I go with chlamydia untreated?

Being tested means that you can be treated, and the proper treatment will help clear up a chlamydial infection in a matter of weeks. On the other hand, if you don't get tested or don't see a healthcare provider for treatment, chlamydia can live in the body for weeks, months, or even years without being detected.

What happens if I had chlamydia for 2 years?

If not treated, chlamydia can lead to damage to the reproductive system. In women, chlamydial infection can spread to the uterus or fallopian tubes and cause pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), according to the CDC. PID can damage the fallopian tubes and uterus and cause chronic pain, infertility, and ectopic pregnancy.

What happens if chlamydia goes untreated for a year?

If a person is not treated for chlamydia, complications may occur. Women frequently develop pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). PID can cause infertility (not being able to get pregnant), chronic pelvic pain, tubal pregnancies, and the continued spread of the disease.

Can chlamydia remain dormant?

Chlamydia bacteria may also remain dormant for long periods and then suddenly cause problems or lead to complications. Women may have pain when they urinate, metrorrhagia (uterine bleeding not related to menstruation), discharge from the genitals and pain in the lower abdomen.

What is late stage chlamydia?

If chlamydia is left untreated, it can damage a woman's reproductive organs. The infection can spread into the uterus or fallopian tubes and cause pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). This happens in about 10 to 15 percent of women with untreated chlamydia.

What happens if a guy has chlamydia for a long time?

Men rarely have health problems from chlamydia. The infection can cause a fever and pain in the tubes attached to the testicles. This can, in rare cases, lead to infertility. Untreated chlamydia may also increase your chances of getting or giving HIV.

Can my partner give me chlamydia but he tested negative?

The short answer

Yes, it is possible to contract a STI from someone who tested negative (for the STIs that they were tested for)… if (and only if!) they were positive for an STI that they weren't tested for. Or if they were positive for an STI in a location that didn't get tested, such as in the mouth and throat.

Why do I have chlamydia and my partner doesn t?

If you had a partner before him for oral, vaginal or anal sex, that could be who you got it from and your current partner managed not to contract it from you (now or yet), or contracted it so recently that he isn't testing positive yet.

Can you get chlamydia in a faithful relationship?

Abstinence is the only proven way to avoid catching or spreading this STI. However, you can limit your risk of getting this infection by being in a monogamous relationship with a partner who tests negative for chlamydia.

How long can STDs lie dormant?

The time from exposure to when symptoms appear can range from a few days to as long as six months. In addition, some STIs may not cause symptoms at all. That means you may be infected but be unaware of it.

What STDs can lie dormant for years?

Latent STDs can cause someone to remain undiagnosed until symptoms begin to appear. This may put them at risk for long-term complications. Chlamydia, hepatitis C, HIV, HSV (herpes simplex virus), and syphilis can all have periods of latency.

How long does chlamydia take to show up on a test?

A doctor can test for chlamydia by swabbing the vagina, cervix, rectum, or throat, or by taking a urine sample. If symptoms appear, they usually present within 7–21 days of exposure. A test can normally detect chlamydia within 1–2 weeks of exposure.

How long can chlamydia be dormant in a female?

The majority of people who have chlamydia don't experience any symptoms at all. And even if you do have symptoms, they may not show up for anywhere from 1 week to 3 or more months after the infection's been transmitted to you through sexual intercourse.