If left untreated, chlamydia can cause pelvic inflammatory disease in women, which can lead to chronic pain and infertility. In men, untreated chlamydia can cause pain and swelling in one or both testicles. If detected early, chlamydia may be treated with a single dose of antibiotics.
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. This can lead to long-term complications, including infertility.
Chlamydia can be cured with antibiotics from a health care provider. However, if chlamydia is left untreated, it can cause permanent damage. Your risk of getting other STIs, like gonorrhea or HIV, increases. In males, untreated chlamydia can lead to sterility (inability to make sperm).
There is no clear timeline on how long it may take for this to occur - while one study suggests that after exposure to the bacteria, it can take a few weeks for PID to develop, the NHS estimates that 1 in 10 women with untreated chlamydia could go on to develop PID within a year.
Note that untreated chlamydia will stick around for multiple years or longer and have long-term effects on your health.
Late-stage chlamydia refers to an infection that has spread to other parts of the body. For example, it may have spread to the cervix (cervicitis), testicular tubes (epididymitis), eyes (conjunctivitis), or throat (pharyngitis), causing inflammation and pain.
If left untreated, chlamydia can cause pelvic inflammatory disease in women, which can lead to chronic pain and infertility. In men, untreated chlamydia can cause pain and swelling in one or both testicles. If detected early, chlamydia may be treated with a single dose of antibiotics.
Chlamydia can eventually cause excessive damage and scarring to the fallopian tubes, ovaries, or testicles, all of which can contribute to a higher risk of infertility.
Some long-term health problems associated with untreated chlamydia include [1]: Pelvic Inflammatory Disease. Infertility. Ectopic pregnancy.
How long does chlamydia last? With treatment, chlamydia should go away within a week or two, however, the test may remain positive for 4 weeks after treatment. It's important to take all antibiotics to fight the infection. Don't have sex during treatment, or you could get reinfected.
Can Chlamydia, if left untreated for 3 or more years, turn into Syphilis? No. Chlamydia won't turn into syphilis if it's left untreated for a long period of time.
Roughly three million Americans contract chlamydia each year [1]. Without medical intervention, a chlamydia infection can persist for years if gone unnoticed [1].
If one partner tests positive for chlamydia and the other does not, there are a few possible explanations: The positive test result could be incorrect. The negative test result could be incorrect. The chlamydia might not have transmitted from the person to their partner.
Chlamydia Dormancy Facts
Although some symptoms can appear within weeks of contact, there have been reports of chlamydia remaining dormant for over twenty years. If you have had recent sexual contact and wonder about chlamydia infections, don't hesitate to test. Listen to your body.
A possible reason for this is that the Chlamydia can lay dormant for many years without the carrier knowing.
There is no time for how long a chlamydia infection must remain in the system to cause infertility, because every body is different. It can take from weeks to two years. Chlamydia can lead to infertility in women due to the amount of scarring it causes to their internal reproductive organs.
As most people do not have symptoms, it is possible the person (who tested positive) could have had chlamydia/gonorrhea from a previous relationship, and has not passed it to their partner yet.
No, Chlamydia infections will not go away on their own. In some cases, a Chlamydia infection can be fought off by the body's immune system, but these cases are rare and should not influence anyone's decisions to get tested or treated.
Most of the time chlamydia doesn't have any symptoms at first, so there probably won't be any early signs. And sometimes the symptoms are so mild that people don't notice them or mistake them for something else. The only way to know for sure if you have chlamydia is to get tested — whether or not you have symptoms.
Most people who have chlamydia don't notice any symptoms.
For some people they don't develop until many months later. Sometimes the symptoms can disappear after a few days. Even if the symptoms disappear you may still have the infection and be able to pass it on.
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.
If left untreated, gonorrhea and chlamydia can cause serious permanent damage, including infertility (unable to get pregnant and have children). Informing your partners gives them the opportunity to get immediate testing, and if necessary, receive treatment.