What health problems can result from untreated chlamydia?
If untreated, chlamydia infection can cause serious reproductive and other health problems. Like the disease itself, the damage that chlamydia causes is often “silent.” In women, the chlamydia bacteria often infect the cells of the cervix. If not treated, the infection can spread into the uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries and cause pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). This happens in up to 40 percent of women with untreated chlamydia. PID can cause: • Infertility. This is the inability to get pregnant. The infection scars the fallopian tubes, keeping eggs from being fertilized. • An ectopic or tubal pregnancy. This means that a fertilized egg starts developing in the fallopian tube instead of moving into the uterus. This is a dangerous condition that can be deadly to the woman. • Chronic pelvic pain. Pain that is ongoing, usually from scar tissue. Untreated chlamydial infections can also cause inflammation of the bladder.
Untreated chlamydia can damage a woman’s reproductive organs and cause other health problems. Like the disease itself, the damage chlamydia causes is often “silent.” For women, untreated chlamydia may lead to: • Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). PID occurs when chlamydia bacteria infect the cells of the cervix, then spread to the uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries. PID occurs in up to 40 percent of women with untreated chlamydia. PID can lead to: • Infertility, meaning you can’t get pregnant. The infection scars the fallopian tubes and keeps eggs from being fertilized. • Ectopic or tubal pregnancy. This happens when a fertilized egg implants outside the uterus. It is a medical emergency. • Chronic pelvic pain, which is ongoing pain, most often from scar tissue. • Cystitis (siss-TEYE-tuhss), inflammation of the bladder. • HIV/AIDS. Women who have chlamydia are 5 times more likely to get HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, from a partner who is infected with it. For men, untreated chlamy
