Pelvic inflammatory disease (or PID for short) is a common infection that women can get.

• About 1 in 7 women get pelvic inflammatory disease.

• It can affect the womb, the tubes (fallopian tubes) that lead from the ovaries to the womb or the ovaries.

• It happens after a sexually transmitted infection (such as chlamydia).

• It's serious. The more often you get pelvic inflammatory disease, the greater your chances of being infertile.

• It can also cause an ectopic pregnancy. If the fertilised egg can't get down the fallopian tube, it starts growing in the tube instead of in the womb.

• You can reduce your chances of getting pelvic inflammatory disease by using a barrier method of contraception, such as condoms or a cap (diaphragm) and spermicidal cream.

NHS guidelines recommend that all women should be tested (screened) for chlamydia before having investigations to see if the fallopian tubes are blocked.^[14]

• Discharge from the vagina

• Pain when you urinate

• Pain in your abdomen

• Fever and chills

• Nausea.

If you have any of these symptoms, or if you've had them in the past, you should see your doctor. Pelvic inflammatory disease can be treated with antibiotics. Antibiotics can kill the bacteria that caused the infection, but they can't undo any damage that's already been done to your fallopian tubes.

Sometimes this condition doesn't have any symptoms, so you may not know that you have it.^[14]To find out more, see our articles on Pelvic inflammatory disease.

Glossary

antibiotics

These medicines are used to help your immune system fight infection. There are a number of different types of antibiotics that work in different ways to get rid of bacteria, parasites, and other infectious agents. Antibiotics do not work against viruses.

ectopic pregnancy

An ectopic pregnancy is when a fertilised egg lodges itself outside of the womb, usually in the fallopian tube. This can be a dangerous condition.

ovaries

Women have two ovaries, one on each side of their womb. They are small glands that store eggs. Inside the ovaries are hundreds of thousands of pre-eggs, called follicles. Some of these grow into eggs.

sexually transmitted infection

An infection that is spread by people having sex is called a sexually transmitted infection (STI) or a sexually transmitted disease (STD). Examples are HIV, gonorrhoea and syphilis.

For more terms related to Fertility problems

Citations