Select a condition Absence seizures Acne ADHD Age-related macular degeneration AIDS Alzheimer's disease AMD Amebic dysentery Anal tears Angina, stable Angina, unstable Ankle sprain Anorexia Anxiety Appendicitis Arthritis Asthma in adults Asthma in children Athlete's foot Atrial fibrillation Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) Autism Back pain Bacterial vaginosis Bad breath Bedsores Bedwetting Bell's palsy Benign prostatic hyperplasia Bipolar disorder Bladder infection in women Blood pressure Breast cancer Breast pain Bronchiectasis Bronchiolitis Bronchitis Bulimia Bunions Burning mouth syndrome Burns and scalds Canker sores Cardiac arrest Carpal tunnel syndrome Cataracts Cellulitis and erysipelas Chickenpox Childbirth, heavy bleeding Childbirth, tear or cut Chlamydia Chronic bronchitis Chronic fatigue syndrome Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Chronic prostatitis Chronic tension type headache Cold sores Colic in babies Colon and rectal cancer Colon and rectal cancer screening Colonic diverticular disease Common cold Conjunctivitis Constipation in adults Constipation in children COPD Crib death Deep vein thrombosis Dementia Depression in adults Depression in children Diabetes, type 1 Diabetes, type 2 Diarrhea in adults Diarrhea in children Diverticular disease Ear infection, middle ear Ear infection, outer ear Ear infection with discharge Ear infection with fluid Ear pain during air travel Ear wax Eczema Emphysema Endometriosis Enlarged prostate Epilepsy Episiotomy Erection problems Essential tremor Febrile seizures Fertility problems Fibroids Flu Gallstones Genital herpes Genital warts GERD GERD in children Glaucoma Gonorrhea Gout Group B streptococcus H. pylori infection Halitosis Hay fever Headache, chronic tension type Head lice Heart and circulation problems in diabetes Heart attack Heartburn Heart failure Heavy periods Heel pain Hemorrhoids Hepatitis B Hepatitis C Hernia Herpes, genital Herpes simplex eye infection High blood pressure High blood pressure in pregnancy High cholesterol HIV infection Hyperactivity IBS Incontinence in women Infection in newborn babies Infertility Influenza Insomnia in adults Irritable bowel syndrome Jaundice in newborn babies Jet lag Kidney infection Kidney stones Leg cramps Leg ulcers Lewy body dementia Lung cancer Lyme disease Macular degeneration Malaria prevention Manic depression Mastalgia Measles, mumps and rubella: prevention Melanoma Meniere's disease Meningococcal disease Menopause Migraine in adults Migraine in children MMR prevention Morning sickness Multiple sclerosis Nail infection, fungal Neck pain Nicotine addiction Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma Nosebleeds in children Obesity Obsessive-compulsive disorder OCD Oral thrush Osteoarthritis Osteoporosis Ovarian cancer Painful periods Pancreas cancer Panic attacks Parkinson's disease PCOS Pelvic inflammatory disease Perineal care Peripheral arterial disease Peripheral vascular disease Pneumonia Polycystic ovary syndrome Postpartum depression Postpartum hemorrhage Post-traumatic stress disorder Preeclampsia Pregnancy, nausea Premature birth Pressure sores Prostate cancer Prostatitis, chronic Psoriasis PTSD Raynaud's disease Rectal cancer screening Recurrent cystitis Reflux in children Rheumatoid arthritis Scabies Schizophrenia Seasonal allergy Shoulder pain Sickle cell anemia Sickle cell disease SIDS Sinusitis Skin cancer (melanoma) Skin cancer (squamous cell) Sleep apnea Sleep problems in children Slipped disk Smoking Sore throat Stomach ulcers Stress headache Stress incontinence Stroke, emergency care Stroke prevention Sudden infant death syndrome Swimmer's ear Tennis elbow Tension headache Testicular cancer Thrush (oral) Tic douloureux Tinnitus Tonsillitis Toxoplasmosis in pregnancy Trigeminal neuralgia Underactive thyroid Urinary tract infections in children Varicocele Varicose veins Vascular dementia Warts Whiplash Wisdom teeth, impacted Wrinkles Yeast infection, vagina

Select treatment area Bladder & Kidneys Blood Brain & nervous system Cancer Children's health Diabetes Digestive system Ear, nose & throat Eating & weight Eyes Fertility Heart and circulation Hormones Infections Lungs & breathing Men's health Mental health Mouth Muscles & bones Pregnancy & childbirth Sexual health Skin Sleep Staying healthy Travel health Women's health

It's not easy to tell if you have pelvic inflammatory disease (PID for short). This is because the symptoms can be mild, or you may not feel ill at all.

You may have PID if you have these symptoms:^{1 2}

• Pain in the lower part of your abdomen
• Pain during sex, which you feel deep inside your body
• Bleeding between your periods
• A discharge from your vagina, which is different from normal and may smell bad.

If you have these symptoms, it is important that you see a doctor to get your symptoms checked out.

You may also have these symptoms:³

• Chills
• Increased pain during your period or during ovulation (this is the time in the middle of your menstrual cycle when an egg is released by one of your ovaries)
• Bleeding after sex
• Pain in your lower back
• Tiredness
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea or vomiting.

Your periods may stop or you may pass urine more often, and you may have pain when passing urine.

Your doctor will ask about your symptoms. They will probably carry out an exam of your lower abdomen and the inside of your vagina. During this exam your doctor will check for these signs of PID:

• Tenderness in the lower part of your abdomen
• Tenderness in your reproductive organs.

Your doctor will also check your temperature. A temperature of more than 100.4 degrees means you are more likely to have an infection. Your doctor may also take a sample of your blood and a swab from your cervix to check for signs of infection.²

If it is possible that you might be pregnant, you will be offered a pregnancy test.¹ This is because if you are pregnant, treatment for PID is usually done in the hospital.²

Your doctor can't tell for certain from these checks whether you have PID. But delaying treatment could risk the infection damaging your fertility. So your doctor will probably start you on antibiotics right away if:²

• You're a young, sexually active woman or you're at risk of sexually transmitted infections
• You have tenderness and signs of infection.

The results of the swab test may help confirm the diagnosis. But if the treatment doesn't make you better, or if there are serious worries about the diagnosis, you may have to go to the hospital for more checks.

You can have PID without having any symptoms at all. But although the disease may not be making you feel ill, it can still damage your reproductive organs.

You may not realize you have PID until you get more serious problems. For example, if you're having problems getting pregnant, you might find that your fallopian tubes are blocked. This is one consequence of PID. But most women with blocked fallopian tubes caused by PID don't know that they had PID.⁴

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment. ©BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2008. All rights reserved.