Antibiotics are the standard treatment for PID. Your doctor may prescribe a combination of antibiotics before receiving the results of your laboratory tests. The antibiotics may be adjusted once your results are known. Your doctor may also prescribe a painkiller and recommend bed rest.

To prevent reinfection of PID, advise your sexual partner to be examined and treated. Avoid sexual intercourse until treatment is completed and tests indicate that the infection has cleared in all partners.

Outpatient treatment is adequate for treating most women with PID. However, if you're seriously ill, pregnant or HIV-positive or have not responded to oral medications, you may need hospitalization. At the hospital, you may receive intravenous (IV) antibiotics, followed by oral antibiotics.

Surgery is rarely necessary. However, if an abscess ruptures or threatens to rupture, your doctor may drain it. In addition, surgery may be performed on women who don't respond to treatment or who have a questionable diagnosis, such as when one or more of the signs or symptoms of PID are absent. In these cases, antibiotic treatment is often tried before surgery, because of the risks of surgery.