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Chlamydia?
My history: Have slept with three women. One over a decade, then a decade long monogamous relationship up until 2-3 years ago. Then, my new girlfriend who I have been dating exclusively for the last 7 months; sexually active for most of that, unprotected. I had never done an STI/STD test and none of my sexual partners had ever expressed need to have one for themselves.
Her history: Got out of a 6 year relationship about a year and a half ago. Was her first sexual partner. She had gotten bacterial vaginosis (BV) early in the relationship, and then four years ago was positive for chlamydia. Took the medication until feeling good but never went back for tests to ensure an eventual negative. After that relationship ended a year and a half ago she had since slept with two other people (protected, a couple of times each) over a 1 year period, and then we started seeing each other exclusively a month or so after the last individual she was with.
With me, she had another bout of bacterial vaginosis. She also started noticing some pain during sex. Now seven months into our relationship, and she told me that she thought we should go get an STI check since never confirmed the negative four years ago.
She got her STI test done and they told her on the spot that some swelling is an indication of PID (Pelvic inflammatory disease) and she needed to start antibiotics right away. My understanding is that PID is a result in most cases (have read between 75-90%) of either chlamydia, or gonorrhea, but can also be due to other non-sexually transmitted infections too. I am going to need to go now as well and likely take antibiotics right away. It will be some time before either of us sees the results to see whether the cause of the PID is chlamydia, the BV, or anything else.
So, my questions:
- Is it regular for chlamydia to not be entirely killed off and really hang around in someone symptomless for another years and then come back? If it turns out to be chlamydia, does that mean that she would have been able to spread it all that time, and as such even though her other two sexual partners between her ex and I were longer than six months ago, she will have to inform them too?
- Or is it the case that four years is excessively long to think it could have hung around and came back, and this an indication that she contracted it a second time from someone else: one of the two she had been with between her ex and I who she said used protection? Or perhaps me if I have always had it and not known? Or even more unsettling: someone else since she and I had started dating?
I am giving benefit of the doubt here for sure. I have no reason to believe she would tell me anything untruthful. These are the questions the conversation kicks up in me so I am hoping that I can hear some educated voices on this which can help me understand the likely string of events.
Her history: Got out of a 6 year relationship about a year and a half ago. Was her first sexual partner. She had gotten bacterial vaginosis (BV) early in the relationship, and then four years ago was positive for chlamydia. Took the medication until feeling good but never went back for tests to ensure an eventual negative. After that relationship ended a year and a half ago she had since slept with two other people (protected, a couple of times each) over a 1 year period, and then we started seeing each other exclusively a month or so after the last individual she was with.
With me, she had another bout of bacterial vaginosis. She also started noticing some pain during sex. Now seven months into our relationship, and she told me that she thought we should go get an STI check since never confirmed the negative four years ago.
She got her STI test done and they told her on the spot that some swelling is an indication of PID (Pelvic inflammatory disease) and she needed to start antibiotics right away. My understanding is that PID is a result in most cases (have read between 75-90%) of either chlamydia, or gonorrhea, but can also be due to other non-sexually transmitted infections too. I am going to need to go now as well and likely take antibiotics right away. It will be some time before either of us sees the results to see whether the cause of the PID is chlamydia, the BV, or anything else.
So, my questions:
- Is it regular for chlamydia to not be entirely killed off and really hang around in someone symptomless for another years and then come back? If it turns out to be chlamydia, does that mean that she would have been able to spread it all that time, and as such even though her other two sexual partners between her ex and I were longer than six months ago, she will have to inform them too?
- Or is it the case that four years is excessively long to think it could have hung around and came back, and this an indication that she contracted it a second time from someone else: one of the two she had been with between her ex and I who she said used protection? Or perhaps me if I have always had it and not known? Or even more unsettling: someone else since she and I had started dating?
I am giving benefit of the doubt here for sure. I have no reason to believe she would tell me anything untruthful. These are the questions the conversation kicks up in me so I am hoping that I can hear some educated voices on this which can help me understand the likely string of events.
I suppose their assumption is that it is highly likely that I have whatever caused the PID, whether given to me by my partner, or prior to, given my partner's status with the PID.
Thank you Grace. That is very helpful information. I appreciate it. I had gone through a full test and waiting results. They did have me take antibiotics right there none the less because of the PID my girlfriend had.
We always recommend full std testing, including herpes testing, of both partners before starting to have unprotected sex. That covers all the bases except for hpv. As we have been told all our lives, hindsight is always 20/20. At this point, both of you should seek out a full std panel just to properly cover the bases.
If your partner had PID from a std, it's likely to be from a prior infection that is no longer active. Follow up on your testing but no need to take antibiotics unless you have a documented infection. The rates of antibiotic resistant infections are growing every year and you shouldn't take them unless you really need to. Is it likely that you had chlamydia and passed it on to her? odds are you would've cleared it on your own from your last partner and no longer be contagious.
grace
If your partner had PID from a std, it's likely to be from a prior infection that is no longer active. Follow up on your testing but no need to take antibiotics unless you have a documented infection. The rates of antibiotic resistant infections are growing every year and you shouldn't take them unless you really need to. Is it likely that you had chlamydia and passed it on to her? odds are you would've cleared it on your own from your last partner and no longer be contagious.
grace
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