 "Photo: Photo by Corina Snyder / American River Current")
Valentine’s Day has come and gone, the chocolate has been eaten, and the flowers have withered and died. Unfortunately, many students may have gotten more than just cute Cupid gifts over this romantic holiday—the kind that tend to hang around for awhile.
Mary MacDonnell, the American River College nurse, encourages students to visit the ARC Health Services office for free chlamydia testing sponsored by Planned Parenthood. The test is painless and takes only a few minutes. Appointments or drop-ins are available Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
“All students that are sexually active, especially those with new or multiple partners, or that aren’t strict with safe sex practices, should come by to see us,” MacDonnell said.
Since chlamydia is so innocuous, many people can be infected and not know it. The danger in this is that chlamydia can lead to Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) before a woman is aware of the problem. This is especially important for women that plan to have children.
“PID damages the fallopian tubes where fertilization occurs, causing an increased risk of ectopic pregnancy. Ectopic pregnancy (tubal pregnancy) is painful, dangerous, and can lead to permanent sterility and even death,” said MacDonnell.
Chlamydia trachomatis is the most frequently reported sexually transmitted disease in the United States, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC).
In 2006, more than a million chlamydia infections were reported to the CDC, and this number is substantially under-reported since 50 percent of infected persons do not have symptoms and therefore don’t get tested.
Chlamydia is transmitted through vaginal, anal, and oral sex, and the greater the number of partners, the higher the risk. Because the cervix of teenage girls and young women is not fully matured, they are at particularly high risk. Even more sobering is the fact that women infected with chlamydia are nearly five times as likely to contract HIV if exposed.
The good news is that chlamydia is very easy to detect; a simple urine test can disclose whether the person is infected, and the infection is easy to treat with antibiotics. A single dose of azithromycinn, or twice-daily doxycycline for one week are the common treatments.
If a student doesn’t qualify for the low-income free screening, they can go to Planned Parenthood directly. “The screening takes about an hour total” said Casey, a spokesperson at the Watt Avenue Planned Parenthood office.
“Depending on your income, the fee for the screening can range between $45 and $120, but if you are eligible for free screening, donations of any size are appreciated”. Planned Parenthood uses the urine test method, and results are returned in a week or so.
“No news is good news,” said Casey. “If the test shows anything abnormal our nurses will contact you by phone immediately.”
If symptoms do occur, it is usually one to three weeks after exposure. Women might notice an abnormal vaginal discharge and a burning sensation when urinating. If the infection spreads from the cervix to the fallopian tubes, lower abdominal pain, low back pain, nausea, fever, pain during sex, or bleeding between periods could result.
Men that are infected might have a discharge from their penis or a burning sensation when urinating, and might also have burning and itching around the opening of the penis.
Chlamydia can also be found in the throats of men and women that engage in oral sex with infected partners.
The surest way to avoid infection is to abstain from sexual contact, or be in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship in which both partners have been tested. Latex condoms used consistently and correctly can also reduce the risk of transmission of chlamydia.
Persons testing positive should receive treatment and notify all sexual partners immediately, going back as far as 60 days. Re-infection is common when all partners are not screened and treated.
“My daughter got pregnant and had the baby,” said one ARC student. “I was more upset that she had not been practicing safe sex than I was about the baby. She could have been exposed to chlamydia or worse, but luckily she only got pregnant.”
Another ARC student seemed less impressed by the big “chlamydia outbreak hype” as she put it. “I know big pharmaceutical companies have a lot of pull with doctors, clinics, and probably even the CDC. I would investigate the problem in-depth on my own before lining up for a chlamydia screening,” she said.
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