No symptoms for 8 years?

Can a male be asymptomatic for 8 years with chlamydia?  My husband just got diagnosed with chlamydia and we have been married for 5 years.  Is it possible that he contracted it from his previous partner 8 years ago?  He's had no symptoms.  We only found out because we've been unable to conceive for the past 2-1/2 years and finally the infertility doctor said he had a bad infection....chlamydia!  We already have a 3 year old boy together, and we had 1 miscarriage too.  The miscarriage was in '04, the baby in '05, then we couldn't conceive.  Is this possible?  Can chlamydia lie dorment for a couple years then come back, then be dormant, then come back?  Why were we able to conceive 4 years ago, but not now if he's had it for 8 years?

[2terrified]

Unfortunately, no one has heard of a person, male or female, not showing any symptoms for that long.  Chlamydia causes major problems that are hard to ignore when untreated.  In a reply somewhere, AJ mentions the longest she has seen anyone go asymptomatic was a year and a half.  As a woman, especially, you would have definitely shown signs within yourself by now.  Have you been tested and treated?  It is possible that he contracted it long enough ago and passed it on to you.  That could definitely affect your fertility.

But again it sounds like your husband is not telling the truth about when he possibly contracted chlamydia.  Sorry.

[gingersnap812]

Just curious...Is AJ a doctor ?

[2terrified]

No, but she has many years experience working with std's. Someone else asked what her credentials were on this forum.  I will try to find that post for you but it will take me a while.  She may pop on and tell us herself or someone who knows her and of her work can tell you as well.

[2terrified]

AJ is also known as Auntiejessi.  She has not been posting much due to a tragic loss in her family.  Here is the link to her profile where it states her credentials:

http://www.medhelp.org/personal_pages/user/207091

[faye83]

"Why were we able to conceive 4 years ago, but not now if he's had it for 8 years?"
You just answered your own question, dear. If it is true that he has had it for 8 years, and you guys have problems conceiving, it might be because he MIGHT have PID(due to leaving the chlamydia untreated for so long). So imagine how much damage can that make in 8 years. That's a lot. Of course 4 years ago there was significant less damage.
Then again I'm not a doctor so I don't know for sure what happened to your hubby.

[Dallasfan]

Chlamydia will not be carried for that length of time. Chlamydia also does not have a dormant phase. I can however not cause symptoms. In men up to 20 % do not have symptoms and in women up to 60 %. Also, the diagnosis of PID is a female diagnosis. Most infertility reported with Chlamydia are in women that have PID with scarring of the fallopian tubes. The connection of male infertility and Chlamydia infection is sketchy. What test was used to diagnose your husband. That information would help use give you more advice.

[frustrated2009]

What is known today about Chlamydia would say that an infection like that would not ay dormant.  Some people do however go several years without knowing they have it, or having symptoms so mild they ignore.  What is extremely unlikely is that you would not have contracted it in those 8 years.  Even if you have no symptoms, Chlamydia is highly infectious.  Lets say that he didn't notice the symptoms, passed it to you and you also didn't notice the symptoms.  In Western countires it is standard for women to be tested for Chlamydia before childbirth - chlamydia eye infections for babies can be very dangerous. So if your test when your son was born was negative - then it is most likely that the infection occured sometime after his birth.  If for some reason he is telling you that it was dormant, then I would request that you all see his doctor to talk about long term effects on all of you - hear it from the horses mouth - so to speak.