How long should you wait after STI treatment before sex again?

The NHS advises not having vaginal, anal or oral sex until you and your sexual partner, if you have one, have completed treatment and tests show that you no longer have gonorrhoea. That means there is no single number of days that works as a rule for everyone. The point at which it is appropriate to have sex again depends on treatment being completed and the follow-up process showing that the infection is no longer present.

The NHS says gonorrhoea is treated with a single dose of antibiotics, which may be given as an injection or tablets, and treatment can sometimes begin before the test result has been confirmed. Receiving a single dose does not itself mean that you can assume you are immediately clear of the infection. The NHS advises returning to the GP surgery or sexual health clinic about a week after starting treatment to be tested again.

If you have been treated for gonorrhoea, follow the advice given by the sexual health clinic or doctor looking after you. They can explain when your follow-up test should happen and when it is appropriate for you and your partner to resume sex.

For chlamydia, the NHS also advises avoiding vaginal, anal or oral sex until you and your partner, if you have one, have finished treatment and tests show that you no longer have chlamydia. Again, the guidance is based on completing treatment and checking that the infection has cleared rather than applying one fixed waiting period to everybody.

The NHS says chlamydia may be treated either with a single dose of antibiotics or with tablets taken for 7 to 14 days. Treatment may also begin before a test result comes back. Those different treatment arrangements are one reason a single countdown does not describe every situation accurately. A healthcare professional can tell you what follow-up is appropriate in your case.

The NHS says you may need another test after treatment to check that you no longer have chlamydia. If you are pregnant, the NHS says you will be tested again 4 weeks after treatment. Speak to a sexual health clinic or your doctor about the timing that applies to you.

The wait is there to reduce the chance of passing the infection to a partner while treatment and follow-up are still being completed. NHS guidance for both gonorrhoea and chlamydia says to avoid vaginal, anal and oral sex until treatment has been completed by you and your partner, if you have one, and testing shows that the infection is no longer present.

Waiting also protects you from a situation in which one person has completed treatment but the other has not yet been tested or treated. Because many people with gonorrhoea or chlamydia have no symptoms, feeling well cannot tell you whether a partner has an infection. The NHS says current and recent partners need to be tested for both infections.

If you are uncertain about whether you or a partner have completed the necessary steps, ask a sexual health clinic or your doctor. They can advise you on testing, treatment and when it is appropriate to have sex again.

No single-dose treatment should be treated as automatic proof that an infection has cleared. The NHS says gonorrhoea is treated with a single dose of antibiotics, and chlamydia can also sometimes be treated with a single dose. However, the NHS advice for both infections still links resuming sex to completing treatment and having tests that show the infection is no longer present.

This is why the idea of simply waiting for a particular number of days can be misleading. The treatment itself is only one part of the process. Follow-up testing, where advised, provides information about whether the infection is still present. For gonorrhoea, the NHS advises going back to the GP surgery or sexual health clinic about a week after starting treatment to be tested again. For chlamydia, you may also need another test after treatment.

Do not use the type of treatment you received as your only guide to when you can have sex again. Ask the clinic or doctor treating you what follow-up is needed and when they consider it appropriate for you to resume sex.

A follow-up test can help establish whether an infection is still present after treatment. The NHS specifically advises people treated for gonorrhoea to return to their GP surgery or sexual health clinic about a week after starting treatment to be tested again. For chlamydia, the NHS says you may need another test after treatment to check that you no longer have the infection.

The timing is not identical for every infection or situation. The NHS says that a person who is pregnant and has been treated for chlamydia will be tested again 4 weeks after treatment. This is another reason not to rely on a general countdown or advice meant for somebody else.

If you have been asked to return for another test, attend that appointment even if you have no symptoms. The NHS notes that not everyone with gonorrhoea has symptoms and that most people with chlamydia do not have symptoms. Your sexual health clinic or doctor can explain what your result means and whether any further steps are needed.

A partner can have gonorrhoea or chlamydia without noticing symptoms. The NHS says not everyone with gonorrhoea has symptoms, while most people with chlamydia do not have any symptoms. When symptoms do appear, gonorrhoea symptoms usually start around 2 weeks after infection, while chlamydia symptoms can appear from 1 week to several months after infection.

For both infections, the NHS says current and recent sexual partners need to be tested. This matters because one person's treatment does not tell you whether a partner has the infection. If a partner remains untested, you cannot safely use their lack of symptoms as evidence that there is no infection to deal with.

You do not have to manage partner contact by yourself. The NHS says a sexual health clinic can help you contact current or recent partners, or contact them for you. If you are worried about what to say or who should be contacted, ask the clinic for help.