Bacteria and viruses are unwanted guests in the human body, which can be difficult to get rid of. The incubation period of any disease can be compared with the period of arrangement and habituation of uninvited guests. The infection, as it were, settles in the new conditions, fully adapts, after which it begins to have a destructive effect on the body as a whole, as well as individual organs and tissues in particular. This article will discuss what the incubation period of chlamydia is, what are the timing of it, as well as methods of treatment and prevention.
General idea of the disease
Chlamydia is a disease caused by infection and is transmitted mainly through sexual contact. They provoke the onset and development of a microbacterium disease called chlamydia. These microbacteria affect mainly the mucous membranes of the human body. As a result of their negative impact, harm is caused to almost all human organs and systems, in particular the urinary, reproductive, digestive systems, as well as the heart, lungs, and even eyes.
Possible consequences
The most common complication of chlamydia is infertility. The main danger lies in the secrecy of this disease. Diagnosing chlamydia in the early stages can be quite difficult. In addition, to some antibacterial agents, these bacteria have a strong resistance, which greatly complicates the process of treating the disease.
Infection mechanisms
The main method of transmission is sexual intercourse without the use of protective equipment.
However, chlamydia can be transmitted from person to person in other ways, such as:
- With an airborne droplet transmission method, chlamydia penetrate the body through the saliva of an infected person when communicating with it. A similar method is known to most people who have ever experienced respiratory infections. In addition, the saliva of a sick animal can become a source of infection.
- The social factor has a separate place among the methods of transmission of chlamydia. With unsatisfactory sanitary treatment of common areas, the probability of infection with chlamydia is quite high. Everyone knows that in a similar pattern, a number of other dangerous diseases are transmitted, for example, Koch's bacillus, which causes pulmonary tuberculosis. Among public places of increased danger, the following can be distinguished: baths and saunas, sanitary rooms, catering points, as well as any other places in which a large number of people accumulate.
- The household mechanism of infection consists in the transmission of bacteria through the use of common toilet articles, for example, when a healthy person puts on things belonging to the patient (in this case we are talking about underwear) or uses his bedding and hygiene products.
- The vertical method of transmission of chlamydia is considered the most insidious, as it poses a threat to the health of newborn children. When the disease is transmitted in this way, the child acquires an innate form of chlamydia. Chlamydia is transmitted from mother to child in the process of labor during the passage of the fetus through the infected birth canal. As a rule, infection of the mother’s body occurs during pregnancy, and by the time the baby is born, the disease takes on a form that poses a threat to others.
Do not forget about caution when communicating with animals, in particular with representatives of the feathered world. It is known that birds are natural carriers and carriers of chlamydia.
Despite the fact that in the external environment the viability of chlamydia persists for two days, these bacteria are considered quite vulnerable, therefore, the percentage of infection with chlamydia in the household way is negligible. Usually, doctors consider the most likely mechanisms for infection to enter the body of a healthy person.
The incubation period of chlamydia - what is it?
From the moment bacteria enter the body of a healthy person until the onset of obvious symptoms, depending on each individual case, it varies from two days to one month. During the incubation period of chlamydia in women, bacteria manage to increase their population by several times, and by the time the latent course of the disease ends, they begin to act actively. The ultimate goal of microorganisms is their release into the environment in search of a new habitat (potential future carrier of the disease).
Since the immune system in different people works differently, it can be quite difficult to identify the development of the disease in the incubation period of chlamydia in the absence of obvious signs. Moreover, if a person does not yet notice pronounced symptoms of the disease, this does not mean that he cannot infect people with whom he is in close relationship, especially under constant contact.
Rules of protection during the latent course of the disease
To reduce the risk of infection, including during the dormant incubation period of chlamydia, medicine offers the following simple protection rules:
- use of contraceptive protective equipment (condoms) in contact with a partner;
- compliance with sanitary standards and requirements in the home and the service sector;
- close monitoring of their own health, in particular, strengthening the protective functions of the body.
With careful observance of these simple requirements, the risk of infection with chlamydia during the latent course of the disease is significantly reduced.
The incubation period of chlamydia: symptoms
As a rule, it is less noticeable in men than in women. It is possible to identify the latent form of the disease only after special laboratory tests. Typically, the patient learns about the presence of chlamydia in his body by chance, seeking the advice of a specialist on another occasion.
Despite the fact that the main signs of the presence of chlamydia in women are more common, timely detection of the disease at this stage is not always possible. The characteristic symptoms of the disease in the fair sex during the incubation period include:
- transparent-looking discharge from the vagina that does not have a specific smell (with the course of the disease, the nature of the discharge changes, it gets an unpleasant pronounced smell);
- spotting in between successive menstrual bleeding (a rare, but possible phenomenon);
- short pain in the lower abdomen at the final stage of the incubation period;
- pain during urination.
In some cases, during the incubation period of chlamydia, women have low-grade fever (fever over a long period of time).
Diagnostic Methods
Since it is extremely difficult to establish the presence of chlamydia in women in the incubation period by external signs, the following laboratory tests are required to make an accurate diagnosis:
- The procedure for taking the contents of the vagina at the reception of a gynecologist. Microscopy is considered one of the most accurate methods for determining the disease at the stage of the incubation period.
- PCR (polymer chain reaction) is the most accurate diagnostic method at the level of molecular biology, the reliability of which is more than 95 percent. True, such a technique is still inaccessible to most patients due to the relatively high cost of the study.
- Urine and blood tests also allow you to recognize the disease at the initial stage of its development, although not in a hundred percent of cases.
- Enzyme immunoassay. This method consists in isolating the patient's blood serum with subsequent tests for possible infections. The reliability of the result of this method is about sixty percent.
- Sowing for the presence of pathogenic microorganisms in the body allows us to determine the presence of chlamydia in the samples taken with an accuracy of ninety-five percent.
It should be noted that to obtain a reliable result in the incubation period of chlamydia in women, experts recommend using several diagnostic methods at the same time.
Treatment
The average duration of treatment for chlamydia in women does not exceed a month. If the patient has a regular friend, both partners should undergo treatment. For the duration of therapy, the following are excluded: sexual contact, alcohol intake and smoking. It is also recommended to adhere to a strict diet in the diet.
The main therapeutic measures are taking antibacterial drugs (antibiotics). In addition, the gynecologist can prescribe special procedures, as well as antifungal agents.
A successful treatment result is the absence of chlamydia in the analyzes after two weeks of taking the drugs and undergoing all the prescribed procedures.
Disease prevention
Chlamydia prophylaxis consists of:
- in compliance with protection requirements, the use of barrier contraception;
- regular examination by a gynecologist;
- in the absence of casual sexual intercourse and the presence of a constant trusted partner.
Couples planning a baby should definitely be tested for the absence of sexual diseases, including chlamydia.