Summary

Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is a sexually transmitted disease seen in women, and is usually caused by gonorrhea or chlamydia. PID most often occurs in adolescent and young women, and can be a silent infection that may go undetected for years. Undiagnosed and untreated, PID leads to many potentially severe and devastating health consequences in women of reproductive age, including infertility.

Pelvic Inflammatory Disease discusses the epidemiology of PID, as well as outlines the epidemiology of gonorrhea and chlamydia in the United States. It highlights, through one young woman’s personal story, the severity, the symptoms, and the consequences of PID. Although effective medications have been available for decades, the disease continues to occur and can result in several health complications in young women.

Specifications

Full-color photographs and illustrations. Sidebars. Charts. Diagrams. Further reading. References. Glossary. Resources. Web sites. Index.

About the Author(s)

Judith A. O’Donnell, M.D., received her B.S. in biology from the University of Scranton and her M.D. from Temple University School of Medicine. She is Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, where she has been a faculty member for 12 years. O’Donnell serves as the director of the Infectious Diseases Fellowship training program at Drexel University College of Medicine. She previously served as the Medical Director of the STD Control Program and the STD Clinic at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. She was one of four national awardees for a five-year grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for improving STD education among medical students and in post-graduate medical training programs. She is an author of several peer-reviewed journal articles, as well as many book chapters, in medical literature.

Steven P. Gelone, Pharm.D, received his B.S. in pharmacy and his doctorate in pharmacy from Temple University School of Pharmacy. He was previously a tenured associate professor of pharmacy, as well as director of clinical research, at the Director of the Infectious Disease and Clinical Research fellowship programs at Temple University School of Pharmacy, where he was a faculty member for 11 years. During his time at the Temple School of Pharmacy, he also served as director of clinical pharmacology at the National Institute of Health-funded General Clinical Research Center at Temple University Hospital. Dr. Gelone is the author of numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters in the medical and pharmacy literature. He has held several positions of increasing responsibility in the pharmaceutical industry in clinical pharmacology and medical affairs. He is currently the president of Cmax Consultants, a clinical development and medical affairs consulting firm located in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania.

Foreword by David Heymann, World Health Organization