What Is Pelvic Inflammatory Disease?

Pelvic inflammatory disease, or PID, is an infection that occurs in the female reproductive system. It’s usually the result of a sexually transmitted disease (STD), most commonly gonorrhea or chlamydia. A person with PID is at risk of harm to the organs in their pelvic area. These organs include the uterus, ovaries, and fallopian tubes, all of which are critically important in normal sexual reproduction. Without properly functioning reproductive organs, that person may find it impossible to have children.

Not all cases of PID lead to serious complications, but some do. Often the disease goes undiagnosed. A sufferer may notice minor symptoms such as pain and nausea but may think those symptoms are a result of something else, perhaps normal discomfort associated with their period. In some cases, the symptoms will disappear and never return. In others, they’ll grow progressively worse and eventually require treatment. People with severe PID sometimes require hospital stays for intravenous antibiotics. In rare cases, that person may need surgery.

PID is a complicated subject but so, too, is sexual health. The human body is an intricate composition of anatomic parts—bones, muscles, organs, and highly specialized tissue. There are countless things that can, and do, go wrong with the body. Many of these things can influence sexual health, even if they’re not directly related to a person’s sexual organs or reproduction.