(^516) Medical-Surgical Nursing Demystified
Bacteroides. Most infections are due to a mix of bacteria. PID occurs most often in
sexually active women and is more common in adolescents. PID is more common
with multiple sexual partners, a young age, unprotected sex, and a history of sexu-
ally transmitted disease.
PROGNOSIS
About one in ten sexually active women will experience PID in her lifetime and
25 percent of those will experience a major complication such as infertility, ectopic
pregnancy, abscess, or chronic pain.
HALLMARK SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
- Abdominal tenderness
- Adnexal tenderness (ovaries and fallopian tubes)
- Cervical motion tenderness (pain on movement of the cervix) due to an
infection - Fever
- Vaginal discharge
- Dyspareunia (pain during intercourse)
- Elevated white blood cell count
INTERPRETING TEST RESULTS
- CBC will show an elevated WBC
- Pregnancy test—beta hCG
- Chlamydia test
- Gonorrhea test
- Venereal Disease Research Laboratory (VDRL) test for syphilis
- Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) test for syphilis
- Fluorescent Treponema Antibody (FTA–ABS) test used to confirm syphilis
- Chandelier sign—a great amount of pain is elicited when the cervix is
touched (the woman will jump to the chandelier)