Doxycycline

What is Doxycycline?

Doxycycline is an antibiotic used to treat a range of bacterial infections, including chlamydia. Doxycycline is the first choice treatment option for chlamydia because it is proven to be highly effective.

Usually, one tablet is taken twice a day for seven days.

Chlamydia is the most common bacterial sexually transmitted disease (STI) in the world. A recent WHO estimate put chlamydia infection rates at 127 million per year. It’s most common amongst teenagers and young people, and is transmitted through unprotected sex.

Common symptoms include:

• painful urination
• discharge from the vagina, penis or anus
• in women, pain in the stomach and bleeding after sex
• in men, pain and swelling in the testicles

Some people do not experience symptoms when they have chlamydia. It’s advised that men and women under 25 who regularly engage in unprotected sex get tested for chlamydia once a year.

To get treatment for chlamydia, you need to provide a positive test result. You can get a test at your local sexual health clinic and upload the result for a clinician to review.

If your partner has tested positive for chlamydia you can sometimes be prescribed treatment without providing a test result for yourself.

How does Doxycycline work for chlamydia?

Doxycycline kills the infection by attacking the bacteria that cause it and stopping it from multiplying. Doxycycline passes into the bacteria and binds to the protein chains within it. This weakens the bacteria and prevents them from thriving.

You should be infection free within 7-14 days of finishing the course (but you should still wait two full weeks until after finishing the course before having sex).

How to take Doxycycline for chlamydia

If you don’t have a positive test result but your partner has tested positive, you’ll need to take a test before you start your course of treatment.

If you’ve got a positive test result, a clinician will usually tell you to take one 100mg tablet twice daily for seven days.

You should take Doxycycline as follows:

• Swallow each tablet whole with a glass of water
• Take your tablets at the same time each day
• Sit or stand when taking your tablets
• Avoid lying down for thirty minutes after taking your tablet because it needs to move straight to your stomach
• If you experience stomach irritation, take your tablet with milk or a meal.

How long does it take Doxycycline to work?

oxycycline takes about seven days to kill the chlamydia infection, although some clinical studies show that it can take as little as three days.

After finishing your course of treatment you should wait for at least seven days before having vaginal sex, anal sex, oral sex or sharing toys, so that you don’t risk passing on the infection to someone else.

What should I do if I make a mistake when taking Doxycycline?

If you make a mistake when taking Doxycycline, it’s important that you contact the clinician who prescribed it for you. If you’re taking it for chlamydia you may need to restart the course or take a different treatment. It’s really important not to have sex until you have completed a full course of treatment exactly as prescribed by the clinician because you risk passing on the infection to someone else.

If you forget to take your medicine, you shouldn't take a double dose. Take your tablet as soon as you remember, and then continue the course of treatment as prescribed.

You should contact our clinician if you have any questions about how to take your medicine.