Summary of the article
The article outlines and discusses the major facts about Chlamydia. These include how it infects people, symptoms, possible complications, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. According to the article, Chlamydia is a sexually transmitted disease transmitted by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention par1). It has the potential to damage the reproductive organs of a woman. In men, it causes certain discharges from the male reproductive organ. Transmission of Chlamydia occurs through sexual intercourse and from a mother to the baby during childbirth (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention par1). Oral sex, vaginal sex, and anal sex are all ways through which transmission occurs.
Symptoms of Chlamydia are not visible in most people and in cases of visibility, they appear 1 to 3 weeks after infection. In women, the cervix and the urethra are the first organs to be infected. Infected women release a vaginal discharge or experience a certain burning and uncomfortable feeling during urination (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention par3). The symptoms are different in most women. Other symptoms include abdominal pains, fever, nausea, painful sensation during sexual intercourse, pain in the lower back, and blood release between periods. In men, symptoms include penile discharge or a burning feeling during urination (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention par4). In addition, there is itching around the penal opening.
Chlamydia can result in serious health complications if not treated. In women, it can cause pelvic inflammatory disease in case it spreads to the fallopian tubes or the uterus. This can consequently lead to infertility, persistent pelvic pain, and ectopic pregnancies that occur outside the uterus (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention par5). In addition, Chlamydia may raise the chances of contracting HIV from sustained exposure.
Screening is a common recommendation for sexually active women to alleviate the risk associated with contracting Chlamydia. In men, health complications are not common. In severe cases, infections spread to the epididymis thus causing pain and sometimes fever. Unlike in women, Chlamydia rarely causes sterility in men. In very rare cases, Chlamydia leads to arthritis that causes lesions on the skin and eye and urethra inflammation.
Diagnosis of Chlamydia involves several laboratory tests. They involve urine or specimens from the penis and specimens from female genitals that include the vagina and the uterus. Treatment for Chlamydia involves the use of antibiotics (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention par6). The most commonly applied prescriptions include azithromycin and doxycycline. Treatment is similar for people infected with HIV and those that are not infected.
Sexually active people should go for regular testing and treatment. In addition, people infected with Chlamydia should not engage in sex after medication to prevent infecting their sexual partners. Women are at higher risks because failure to treat Chlamydia can lead to severe health complications as compared to men. It is important for any person undergoing treatment to take regular tests after every three months to counter incidences of re-infection.
The best way to prevent Chlamydia infection is to abstain from any form of sexual intercourse. In addition, it is important to maintain one sexual partner who is free from infection. In addition, condoms can help reduce chances of infection if used properly and every time one engages in sexual intercourse. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends annual testing (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention par 8). This is in addition to a risk assessment conducted by a health professional. Any observed symptom, such as unusual discharges, burning sensation during urination, or intense itching is a sign of a sexually transmitted disease. In that case, the individual should visit the doctor as soon as possible.
Why I chose the article
I chose the article because of several reasons. First, the article is so exhaustive and educative. It covers all aspects of Chlamydia that include its infection routes, symptoms, resulting in complications, treatment, and ways of prevention. It contains all the necessary information on Chlamydia. Secondly, it discusses the disease as it occurs in men and women. It does not generalize the topic. It outlines all symptoms observed in both women and men. The symptoms are different and well described and therefore, one can rely on the information from the article to check for Chlamydia infection before visiting a physician. In addition, the article simply presents the information by using simple medical terms. Very few complex medical terms are used and that makes it easy to grasp and comprehend.
Significance to Microbiology
The article is detailed and presents the information in a way that makes it relevant to the field of microbiology. The simple use of medical terminologies that are easy to understand even by readers who are not specialized in the field of microbiology is highly commendable. This is because Chlamydia infects many people and it is important to know the symptoms of its infection. This ensures that an infected person seeks early treatment before the disease advances to more severe medical complications, especially in women.
The study of Chlamydia is very important in the field of microbiology because of its medical importance. It has a diverse range of complications that result from failure to seek medical treatment. In women, it has the potential to spread to the womb and cause pelvic inflammatory diseases (Gibbs and Sweet 54). This leads to ectopic pregnancies and cervix inflammation. In men, it causes urethral inflammation epididymitis, and arthritis. Microbiology studies of diseases involve exploring the taxonomy, evolution, epidemiology, treatment, and prevention of diseases. All these aspects represent the basis for the study of Chlamydia and thus develop microbiological knowledge on the study of diseases.
In addition, the study of Chlamydia helps in the prevention of diseases that result from extended periods of Chlamydia infection without medical treatment (Gibbs and Sweet 56). Most of these complications are long-term and cause severe damage. For example, inflammation of the cervix for long periods can lead to cases of infertility in women (Boswell et al 34). It also develops scientific knowledge of other Chlamydia species that cause other medical complications associated with Chlamydia. This leads to better and more effective methods of treatment of such complications.
Conclusion
Chlamydia is a sexually transmitted disease transmitted by a bacterium known as Chlamydia trachomatis. It has the potential to damage the reproductive organs of a woman. In men, it causes certain discharges from the male reproductive organ. Chlamydia transmission occurs through sexual intercourse and from a mother to a baby during childbirth. The study of Chlamydia is very important in the field of microbiology because of its medical importance (Boswell et al 43).
It has a diverse range of complications that result from failure to seek medical treatment. In women, it has the potential to spread to the womb and cause pelvic inflammatory diseases. In men, it causes urethral inflammation epididymitis, and arthritis. In addition, the study of Chlamydia helps in the prevention of diseases that result from extended periods of Chlamydia infection without medical treatment. Most of these complications are long-term and cause severe damage.
Works Cited
Boswell Taylor, Alden, David and Irving Williams. Medical Microbiology. New York: Taylor & Francis, 2006. Print.
Chlamydia: CDC Fact Sheet. Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Center for Disease Prevention and Control. 2012. Web.
Gibbs, Richard, and Ronald, S. Infectious Diseases of the Female Genital Tract. New York: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2009. Print.