Short answer
Mycoplasma genitalium (Mgen) is a sexually transmitted bacterium increasingly recognized behind persistent urethritis, cervicitis, and pelvic inflammatory disease.
It needs its own specific test, standard panels miss it entirely, and resistance-aware, clinician-directed care.
Suspect it when symptoms survive standard chlamydia and gonorrhea therapy.
Advertisement
Need a test? STDTest.online is education-only and does not provide testing. The banner above is a paid advertisement for an independent testing service. We may earn a commission if you use it, at no extra cost to you. Always confirm current prices, accreditation, and privacy terms on their website before ordering.
See Tests & Prices →Transmission and carriage
Mgen spreads through sexual contact, with condoms reducing risk.
Many carriers are asymptomatic, which sustains transmission silently through networks.
Unlike chlamydia and gonorrhea, it is not a routine-screening target. Testing follows persistent symptoms rather than schedules, a deliberate restraint that slows resistance.
The testing rationale is detailed in Mycoplasma genitalium Testing Explained.
Symptoms that point toward it
Possible signs mirror chlamydia: discharge, burning urination, urethral or cervical inflammation, pelvic pain.
The classic clue is persistence. Symptoms continuing after standard therapy completed correctly.
That pattern distinguishes Mgen suspicion from initial-infection workups and is the main trigger clinicians use to order the specific test.
Testing and diagnosis without wasted steps
Only Mgen-specific NAAT detects it. Standard chlamydia/gonorrhea panels are blind to it regardless of symptoms.
Resistance-marker assays increasingly accompany diagnosis, predicting which drug classes will fail before therapy starts.
Availability concentrates in reference laboratories, so clinicians may refer samples onward; turnaround runs longer than routine panels.
Treatment principles, strictly clinician-directed
Therapy follows staged, resistance-guided planning with test-of-cure verification. Never empiric repeats of drugs that already failed.
Partners from recent months need evaluation, and self-treatment (especially with leftover macrolides) actively breeds the resistance making Mgen harder to treat.
Suspected treatment failure belongs in STI-specialty care where resistance pathways and alternatives are managed daily.
When to seek care
Return to care for symptoms persisting after chlamydia/gonorrhea treatment, for pelvic pain or discharge unresponsive to first therapy, or after a partner’s Mgen diagnosis.