PID Pelvic Inflammatory Diseas

Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is caused by an infection that starts in the vagina. Most often, it is caused by a sexually transmitted disease (STD). The infection spreads upward into the uterus, fallopian tubes, and pelvis.

Women who use intrauterine devices (IUDs) are at increased risk for PID. Rarely, the bacteria that cause PID enter the body during childbirth or abortion.

PID can cause pelvic pain and fevers. It also may cause infertility (inability to get pregnant) because of damage to the fallopian tubes. Sacs of pus, called abscesses, may form in the pelvis. Sometimes the vagina will discharge a pus-like substance.

If PID is not treated, pain may be so intense that it is hard to walk. The infection may spread into the bloodstream and throughout the body, causing fever, chills, joint infections, and sometimes death. If you have PID and it is the result of an STD, you and your sexual partner will be given drugs called antibiotics to treat the infection. If an abscess has formed, it may need to be drained. Treatment may include hospitalization. An operation may be done to help heal scar tissue. If the disease cannot be stopped in any other way, you may need surgery to remove the infected organs.

Reprinted from the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR)

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