MYCOPLASMA, CHLAMYDIA AND UREAPLASMA

Report #7234

Mycoplasma, chlamydia and ureaplasma can infect your eyes, throat, nose, lungs, vagina, bladder, urinary tube, prostate, colon and joints.

You can get it in your lungs when an infected person coughs in your face or in your genitals and urinary tract when an infected person has sexual relations with you. You may feel like there is a hair in your urinary tube, you may have terrible burning on urination, absolute misery when your bladder is full, spotting between periods, a feeling that you have to urinate all the time, pain on intercourse or you may have no symptoms at all.

The only way to diagnose mycoplasma infections is to order special test such as PCR which are not available to practicing physicians. For many, the only way to find if they are infected with mycoplasma, chlamydia or ureaplasma is to take certain antibiotics for several weeks or months and see if they feel better. However, the next time they go back to their sexual partner, they become infected again. If your doctor cannot diagnose the cause of a chronic cough, urinary tract infection or sore throat, you may be cured when you and your sexual partner take azithromycin, minocycline or a quinolone antibiotic for several weeks or months. See report #G144.

By Gabe Mirkin, M.D., for CBS Radio News

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Reported 10/6/97; Checked 9/5/05