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Am I being naive?
After some abdominal pain in June I was given some tests and diagnosed with Chlamydia. My husband was tested twice (one urine, one swab) both were negative. I have no reason to believe he has been unfaithful in our 16 years together - he swears he hasn't. Apart from one other person 18 years ago, I have never had sexual contact with anyone other than my husband.
My doctor said that no test was 100% accurate and I should just forget about it. (I had been treated and it was too late to test again) I did however read about an antibody test here and had this done at a private clinic. These are the results:
Chlamydia Antibodies MIF
C.trachomatis IgG weak Positive IgM Negative
[Serovar A-K & L1-L3]
C.psittaci IgG Negative IgM Negative
C.pneumoniae IgG Negative IgM Negative
COMMENT : Results indicate exposure to C.trachomatis at some time. Negative IgM antibody rules out acute primary infection.
How accurate and reliable are these results. Is it possible that both my tests are false positive? Or that the one in April was false but that I may have had the infection 18 years ago? Am I being naive, did my husband cheat? What is the most likely scenario and timescales? Are my results more likely to be false positives or his false negatives? Sorry for all the questions but this is so confusing and is obviously causing problems between us.
My doctor said that no test was 100% accurate and I should just forget about it. (I had been treated and it was too late to test again) I did however read about an antibody test here and had this done at a private clinic. These are the results:
Chlamydia Antibodies MIF
C.trachomatis IgG weak Positive IgM Negative
[Serovar A-K & L1-L3]
C.psittaci IgG Negative IgM Negative
C.pneumoniae IgG Negative IgM Negative
COMMENT : Results indicate exposure to C.trachomatis at some time. Negative IgM antibody rules out acute primary infection.
How accurate and reliable are these results. Is it possible that both my tests are false positive? Or that the one in April was false but that I may have had the infection 18 years ago? Am I being naive, did my husband cheat? What is the most likely scenario and timescales? Are my results more likely to be false positives or his false negatives? Sorry for all the questions but this is so confusing and is obviously causing problems between us.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Probably yes but not necessarily.
You need to accept that there is no way to know the answers you seek with certainty. The information you have now is all you will ever have. You need to make your own decision whether to give your husband the benefit of the doubt or not. I cannot help further.
You need to accept that there is no way to know the answers you seek with certainty. The information you have now is all you will ever have. You need to make your own decision whether to give your husband the benefit of the doubt or not. I cannot help further.
If my husband had cleared the infection himself or had taken antibiotics without telling me, wouldn't I have reinfected him? (We were sleeping together 3-5 per week at the time)
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
You don't say what test was done in June (or April - you give both times). Your doctor is right that no test is perfect, and you could have had a false postive result. But that is more likely with some tests than others.
Your blood test results don't help one way or the other. The chlamydia blood test is not designed for diagnostic testing in cases like yours. The main use is to evaluation of women with infertility, and even there the data are not strong that the results are useful. Your test indeed shows that you probably were infected with Chlamydia trachomatis somewhere along the line, but it could have been any time in your life, such as a distant past sex partner.
In general, the most common explanation for cases like yours is that the male partner has had other partners. Even without treatment, chlamydia generally clears up on its own within a few weeks or months; and people can take antibotics but don't necessarily admit it. So your husband's negative test results don't mean much one way or the other. But there are plenty of exceptions, and you are the only one who can judge your husband's truthfulness. I'm not a relationship expert, but if you have no other evidence he has been unfaithful, it's probably wise to give him the benefit of the doubt.
I hope this helps. Best wishes-- HHH, MD
Your blood test results don't help one way or the other. The chlamydia blood test is not designed for diagnostic testing in cases like yours. The main use is to evaluation of women with infertility, and even there the data are not strong that the results are useful. Your test indeed shows that you probably were infected with Chlamydia trachomatis somewhere along the line, but it could have been any time in your life, such as a distant past sex partner.
In general, the most common explanation for cases like yours is that the male partner has had other partners. Even without treatment, chlamydia generally clears up on its own within a few weeks or months; and people can take antibotics but don't necessarily admit it. So your husband's negative test results don't mean much one way or the other. But there are plenty of exceptions, and you are the only one who can judge your husband's truthfulness. I'm not a relationship expert, but if you have no other evidence he has been unfaithful, it's probably wise to give him the benefit of the doubt.
I hope this helps. Best wishes-- HHH, MD
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