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In this Article

• Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) facts*
• What is pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)?
• What causes pelvic inflammatory disease?
• How common is pelvic inflammatory disease?
• Are some women more likely to get pelvic inflammatory disease?
• What are the signs and symptoms of pelvic inflammatory disease?
• How is pelvic inflammatory disease diagnosed?
• How is pelvic inflammatory disease treated?
• What if my partner is infected with pelvic inflammatory disease?
• Can pelvic inflammatory disease cause infertility?
• How can pelvic inflammatory disease be prevented?
• What should I do if I think I have an STI (sexually transmitted disease)?
• Patient Comments: Pelvic Inflammatory Disease - Treatments
• Patient Comments: Pelvic Inflammatory Disease - Symptoms
• Find a local Obstetrician-Gynecologist in your town
• Pelvic Inflammatory Disease Index

Many women don't know they have PID because they don't have any symptoms. For women who have them, symptoms can range from mild to severe. The most common symptom of PID is pain in your lower abdomen (stomach area). Other symptoms include:

• Fever (100.4 F or higher)
  
  
• Vaginal discharge that may smell foul
  
  
• Painful sex
  
  
• Painful urination
  
  
• Irregular periods (monthly bleeding)
  
  
• Pain in the upper right abdomen

Pelvic inflammatory disease can come on fast with extreme pain and fever, especially if it's caused by gonorrhea.

If you think that you may have pelvic inflammatory disease, see a doctor right away. If you have pain in your lower abdomen (stomach area), your doctor will perform a physical exam. This will include a pelvic (internal) exam. Your doctor will check for:

• Abnormal discharge from your vagina or cervix
  
  
• Lumps called abscesses near your ovaries and tubes
  
  
• Tenderness or pain in your pelvic organs

Your doctor will also test you for STIs, including HIV and syphilis (SI-fuh-luhs), urinary tract infection, and if needed, pregnancy. If needed, your doctor may do other tests.

• Ultrasound (sonogram) — a test that uses sound waves to take pictures of the pelvic area.
  
  
• Endometrial (en-duh-MEE-tree-uhl) (uterine) biopsy — the doctor removes and tests a small piece of the endometrium (the inside lining of the womb).
  
  
• Laparoscopy (lap-uh-RAHS-kuh-pee) — the doctor inserts a small, lighted tube through your abdomen (stomach area) to look at your pelvic organs.

These tests will help your doctor find out if you have pelvic inflammatory disease, or if you have a different problem that looks like pelvic inflammatory disease.