Doxycycline as Chlamydia Treatment

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Doxycycline is an antibiotic that is the recommended course of treatment for chlamydia and is also used to treat other infections such as malaria.

After you have placed your order, our online doctor will review whether Doxycycline is the correct treatment for you. Once your order has been approved by our doctors, you will receive your prescription via post.

Your Superdrug Online Doctor prescription allows you to buy Doxycycline at any pharmacy in Ireland.

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What is Doxycycline?

Doxycycline is an antibiotic that is used to treat different types of bacterial infections. Antibiotics are divided into different classes and Doxycycline belongs to the tetracycline class.

Doxycycline is also one of the most common treatment courses for protection against Malaria when travelling to high risk areas.

How does Doxycycline treat chlamydia?

Antibiotics work against bacteria. For their own survival and reproduction, bacteria need to produce certain proteins. Doxycycline works by entering the bacteria cells and blocking the production of these proteins.

When taken correctly, Doxycycline is effective at fighting bacterial infections like Chlamydia in 95% of cases. To make sure that you take it correctly, it’s important to complete the treatment by taking every single dose on time as prescribed.

In order to successfully treat chlamydia, doxycycline must be taken twice a day for 7 days. The capsules must be swallowed with water in the morning and in the evening, and can be taken with or without food.

Although Doxycycline is effective at fighting off existing bacterial infections in your body, it does not protect you from getting them again. That’s why it’s recommended that you avoid vaginal, oral, and anal sex, even with a condom, while you’re undergoing treatment. The same is true for your partner. This makes sure that you don’t catch it again while you’re recovering, and that you don’t spread it to anyone else.

Can I take Doxycycline?

Though a commonly prescribed antibiotic, not everyone can take Doxycycline. Doxycycline treatment is not right for you if you:

are allergic to doxycycline, or tetracyclines in general
are pregnant or breastfeeding
are younger than 12
have sucrose or fructose intolerance
have enamel hypoplasia

If you have the following conditions, you should talk to a doctor to check if it’s safe for you to take doxycycline:

liver problems
kidney problems
oesophagitis - an inflammation or irritation of the oesophagus
an autoimmune disease, like lupus
myasthenia gravis - a rare neuromuscular condition that causes muscle weakness

Doxycycline can react with other medications or supplements. If you’re taking the following medications, talk to a doctor before starting doxycycline treatment:

Other antibiotics
Antacids
Food supplements containing aluminium, bismuth, calcium, magnesium, or zinc
Iron supplements
Retinoids – used to treat various skin conditions such as acne
Quinapril – used to treat high blood pressure
Anticoagulants, like warfarin
Kaolin – used to treat diarrhoea
Ergotamine or methysergide – used to treat migraines or headaches
Methoxyflurane – used as an anaesthetic
Methotrexate – used to treat psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, or cancer
Antiepileptics, like carbamazepine or phenytoin
Ciclosporin – used to adjust the body’s immune response after organ transplant
Rifampicin – used to treat tuberculosis

Doxycycline can also interfere with the effectiveness of the typhoid vaccine. To make sure that doxycycline is the right treatment option for you, always get assessed by a qualified doctor, online or in person.

If you can’t take Doxycycline, there may be other treatment options available for you. Check our chlamydia treatment page.

Can I buy Doxycycline online?

Superdrug Online Doctor offers a safe way to get a prescription online. A fully qualified and UK registered doctor will analyse your medical information and history and, if Doxycycline is suitable for you, send you a prescription. You can then use it to buy Doxycycline in any pharmacy in Ireland.

Note that due to chlamydia often being a symptomless condition, the only way to know for sure that you have chlamydia and therefore need treatment is by doing a test. If your test result returns positive, you can then proceed to get treatment from Superdrug Online Doctor.

You are also at risk of chlamydia if you have unprotected sex with someone who is known to have chlamydia. In that case it is usually recommended to be treated for chlamydia, even without getting tested first.

Are there other chlamydia treatment options?

The other antibiotic that is frequently used to treat chlamydia is Azithromycin (often known by the brand name Zithromax).

Azithromycin is taken as a 3-day course, making it a more attractive treatment option for some people.

If you are unable to take Azithromycin or Doxycycline, you will have to contact your GP and they will be able to prescribe you another course of treatment, such as amoxicillin, or erythromycin.

What are the side effects of Doxycycline?

The most common side effects of chlamydia treatment are:

tummy pain
diarrhoea
feeling or being sick (nausea/vomiting)
thrush in women
headache
sensitivity to light

Side effects are possible, but not everyone taking doxycycline will get them. More severe side effects, which are much less common, but need immediate medical attention, include:

severe skin reaction
photo onycholysis: loosening of the nail from the nail bed after sun exposure
severe headaches
blurred vision, double vision, blind spots
bulging fontanelle: soft spots on your head
heartburn
pseudomembranous colitis: severe watery or bloody diarrhoea with very painful stomach cramps
teeth discolouration or underdevelopment
low blood pressure, fast heart rate
blood disorders
muscle and joint pain
hepatitis, liver failure

If you’re experiencing mild or severe side effects after taking doxycycline, talk about them with your doctor or pharmacist. They might suggest that you:

stop the treatment
switch to another antibiotic
treat the side effects with other medications, like painkillers

Can you drink alcohol if you're taking Doxycycline?

Drinking alcohol during treatment can stop doxycycline from working properly, and can increase the risk of side effects and liver problems. If you avoid drinking alcohol during treatment, you’ll give your body the best chance to recover from the infection as soon as possible. You can start drinking alcohol safely 48 hours after taking your last capsule.

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