Symptoms:

The most common symptoms of PID include:

• Fever (not always present; may come and go)
• Pain in the abdomen or pelvis
• Vaginal discharge with abnormal color, texture, or smell

Other symptoms that may occur with PID:

• Bleeding after intercourse
• Chills
• Fatigue
• Frequent urination
• Increased menstrual cramping
• Increased pain during ovulation
• Irregular menstrual bleeding or spotting
• Lack of appetite
• Low back pain
• Nausea, with or without vomiting
• No menstruation
• Painful sexual intercourse
• Pain with urination
• Tenderness

Note: There may be no symptoms. People who experience an ectopic pregnancy or infertility often have silent PID, which is usually caused by chlamydia infection.

Signs and tests:

You may have a fever and abdominal tenderness. A pelvic examination may show:

• A cervix that bleeds easily
• Cervical discharge
• Pain with movement of the cervix
• Tenderness in the uterus or ovaries

Tests and procedures may include:

• Endocervical culture for gonorrhea, chlamydia, or other infections
• Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR)
• Laparoscopy
• Pelvic ultrasound or CT scan
• Serum HCG (pregnancy test)
• WBC count
• Wet prep or wet mount microscopic examination