<P> Chlamydia can be spread during vaginal, anal, or oral sex, and can be passed from an infected mother to her baby during childbirth . The eye infections may also be spread by personal contact, flies, and contaminated towels in areas with poor sanitation . Chlamydia trachomatis only occurs in humans . Diagnosis is often by screening which is recommended yearly in sexually active women under the age of twenty five, others at higher risk, and at the first prenatal visit . Testing can be done on the urine or a swab of the cervix, vagina, or urethra . Rectal or mouth swabs are required to diagnose infections in those areas . </P> <P> Prevention is by not having sex, the use of condoms, or having sex with only one other person, who is not infected . Chlamydia can be cured by antibiotics with typically either azithromycin or doxycycline being used . Erythromycin or azithromycin is recommended in babies and during pregnancy . Sexual partners should also be treated and the infected people advised not to have sex for seven days and until symptom free . Gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV should be tested for in those who have been infected . Following treatment people should be tested again after three months . </P> <P> Chlamydia is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections, affecting about 4.2% of women and 2.7% of men worldwide . In 2015 about 61 million new cases occurred globally . In the United States about 1.4 million cases were reported in 2014 . Infections are most common among those between the ages of 15 and 25 and are more common in women than men . In 2015 infections resulted in about 200 deaths . The word "chlamydia" is from the Greek, χλαμύδα meaning "cloak". </P> <P> Chlamydial infection of the cervix (neck of the womb) is a sexually transmitted infection which has no symptoms for 50--70% of women infected . The infection can be passed through vaginal, anal, or oral sex . Of those who have an asymptomatic infection that is not detected by their doctor, approximately half will develop pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), a generic term for infection of the uterus, fallopian tubes, and / or ovaries . PID can cause scarring inside the reproductive organs, which can later cause serious complications, including chronic pelvic pain, difficulty becoming pregnant, ectopic (tubal) pregnancy, and other dangerous complications of pregnancy . </P>

Where does the bacteria that causes chlamydia come from