Most people who have chlamydia don’t know it because most people with the infection won’t experience obvious symptoms. Although it is easy to cure, untreated chlamydia can result in damage to reproductive organs and affect fertility over time. The sooner a person with chlamydia is treated, the better their health outcomes. People who are being tested should request site-specific testing based upon the type of sex they have engaged in. A urine test will detect chlamydia in the urinary tract, but won’t identify an infection of the throat (from oral receptive sex) or rectum (from anal receptive sex).
In Vermont, women are diagnosed at a rate that is three times that of men. More than 70% of the infections in our state are among Vermonters age 15 to 24. The Health Department recommends that sexually active women between the ages of 15 and 24 be screened for chlamydia on a yearly basis. We can help Vermonters with chlamydia understand their diagnosis and treatment. On a free and voluntary basis, we can assist people diagnosed with chlamydia to notify their sexual partners and link these partners to testing or treatment.