Ureaplasma that won't go away: why, and what to try

Author: Aunt Vadge
Qualified Naturopath | BHSc(N)

Last reviewed: July 7, 2026

Hi Aunt Vadge,

I keep getting ureaplasma and the antibiotics are no longer working. I was told about your company and wondered how you help.

From,
Angela
Age 45, USA

Hello Angela,

Recurrent ureaplasma that shrugs off antibiotics is properly frustrating – but it’s worth stepping back before reaching for yet another round, because the answer often isn’t a stronger antibiotic.

The first thing to know is that ureaplasma lives harmlessly in a lot of people’s genital tracts as a normal commensal, so a key question is whether it’s actually causing your symptoms or just showing up on a test.

If you have clear symptoms it’s worth treating; if it’s an incidental finding, repeated antibiotics can do more harm than good by feeding resistance, which ureaplasma is famous for.

When antibiotics stop working, it’s usually one of three things – antibiotic resistance, an immune system under the pump that can’t clear it, or reinfection from a partner – and working out which one is yours is the whole game.

So I’d retest properly to confirm the ureaplasma is still there and causing trouble (and to check for anything else going on; the best way to test thoroughly is here), check your partner since they may need testing and treating too – otherwise you can pass it back and forth indefinitely, so use barriers including for oral sex until you both know where you stand – and look at the bigger picture, because recurrent infection that won’t clear often points to an immune or root-cause factor worth addressing.

This is exactly the kind of stubborn, been-down-every-path case we take on clinically, where the value is in working out your specific picture rather than a one-size-fits-all answer. So if you’d like that deep dive you can book an appointment with one of our practitioners.

You’re not out of options – you just need a fresh angle.

Love,
Aunt Vadge

This is general information based on current research and our clinical experience, not a substitute for personalised medical advice.