Therapy Analysis
Chlamydia - Chlamydia, Gonorrhoea & Syphilis
Chlamydia, caused by the bacteria Chlamydia trachomatis, is now known to be the most common bacterial STI in the UK and is mostly asymptomatic, with an estimated 80% of women and 50% of men having no notable symptoms. It is thus known as the 'silent epidemic'.
Despite a dramatic rise in prevalence with 109,832 new cases in the UK in 2005, a 5% increase from the previous year, many sexually-active individuals in such developed countries still seem to remain disengaged as to the dangers of STI's. Ironically, this is particularly true in those at greatest risk: women aged 16-24 and men aged 20-34.
PID is highly destructive to the female reproductive organs, leading to scar formation and adhesions to nearby tissues and organs and is a frequent cause of infertility..After bacterial transmission through the mucosal layer, Chlamydiae replicate intracellularly within a membranebound structure known as an inclusion and the infection cycle begins. Chlamidiae evade cell degradation and multiply rapidly in their active 'reticulate body' form, bursting the host cell and enabling infection to spread. The cycle continues with an incubation period of 1-3 weeks preceding the development symptoms where they occur, which can include an abnormal vaginal or penile discharge comprising mucus or pus, and pain while urinating, which although very mild, can progress to cause further complication if left untreated.
The most prominent complication, affecting around 30% of untreated women, is Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID), a chronic infection of the uterus, fallopian tubes, and/or ovaries. PID is highly destructive to the female reproductive organs, leading to scar formation and adhesions to nearby tissues and organs and is a frequent cause of infertility, causing great distress to young women. With the added increased potential for abscesses, chronic pelvic pain and ectopic pregnancy, along with being the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths in adult females, chlamydia poses a serious threat to women.
In men, the bacteria can infect the urinary tract and the epididymis, causing inflammation of the reproductive area near the testicles, known as epididymitis. C. trachomatis can also cause inflammation of the rectum and lining of the eye (conjunctivitis) and can also infect the throat following oral sexual contact with an infected partner.
