Symptoms

In men symptoms of Chlamydia can be:

• drops of white liquid on the end of the penis (a discharge)
• pain when passing urine.

In women symptoms of Chlamydia can be:

• a white liquid discharge from the vagina
• pain when passing urine
• pain in the lower abdomen
• pain during sex.

However, most men or women who have Chlamydia do not have any symptoms.

How it is transmitted

You can get Chlamydia by having sex with someone who already has it. Chlamydia is most easily passed on through penetrative anal and vaginal sex without a condom, although it can also be transmitted on fingers from one person’s penis or vagina to another.

A pregnant woman who has Chlamydia can pass it on to her baby when it is being born.

What can I do if I think I have Chlamydia?

If you think you have Chlamydia you can go to a NHS sexual health clinic. You can read more about clinics and find your nearest one elsewhere on this website. You can also visit your local or family doctor (GP). Many of Terrence Higgins Trust's Fastest or Young and Free clinics offer testing for Chlamydia. All of these services are free of charge.

You may also want to consider visiting a private clinic, or using the postal testing and treatment service offered by Terrence Higgins Trust and Dr Thom.

By law sexual health clinics cannot tell anyone about your visit. However, these rules do not apply to your GP who can tell other people that you have had an appointment with them.

Testing

The doctor or nurse will test you for Chlamydia either by taking a urine sample or a small sample with cotton wool or a swab:

• In women swabs are usually taken from the cervix (entrance to the womb) and urethra.
• In men swabs are usually taken from the tip of the penis.

Having a swab taken is not painful although it may be uncomfortable.

The samples are then tested for Chlamydia.

Treatment

It is usually easy to get rid of Chlamydia with a course of antibiotics, but you have to take all the tablets you are given to kill the infection. Once you have taken the tablets the doctor may ask you to return to check that the Chlamydia has gone.

Why get treated?

It is important to get rid of Chlamydia because if it stays in your body it can lead to serious health problems, including:

• pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) in women, where the fallopian tubes are infected, become inflamed and can cause infertility (stopping a woman from being able to have children)
• ectopic pregnancies (pregnancy outside the womb) in women if they have Chlamydia when they are pregnant
• inflammation of the testicles in men which can cause infertility (stopping a man from being able to have children).

Protect yourself and others

If you have Chlamydia it is best to tell your boyfriend or girlfriend or anyone else you have had sex with recently so that they can get a checkup. Remember that until the Chlamydia is treated, and you have taken all the antibiotics, you can still pass it on to anyone you have sex with.

Using a condom can help protect against getting Chlamydia. Remember too that using a condom will help protect you against getting or passing on other sexually transmitted infections.