Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) also referred to as sexually transmitted infections (STIs) affect people from all walks of life irrespective of age and background.
An acceptable STDs definition is as follows: any infection that is transmitted through sexual contact. A sexual partner spreads the disease through oral, anal or vaginal sex.
This makes STDs one of the most difficult diseases to catch because you have to be up close and personal with another person to be infected.
Then why are sexually transmitted diseases prevalent? It is simply because most people don’t know how to prevent and treat them and even if they do so it is not done effectively.
It is vital to note that not all diseases that affect the human sexual reproductive organs are classified as STDs; as a matter of fact a couple of them are not sexually transmitted.
A good example is urinary tract infection (UTI) which results from irritation during intercourse. The following are some widespread STDs that you should be aware of.
Chlamydia
Chlamydia is the most prevalent STD because it is asymptomatic: most people who are infected don’t exhibit symptoms for a long time (months or even years).
Irrespective of this, once it is diagnosed Chlamydia can also be treated effectively with broad spectrum antibiotics. In men it infects the urethra while in women the cervix is affected.
The most common symptoms are:
Experiencing pain during sexual intercourse
Discharge from the vagina or penis.
Experiencing burning pain when passing urine.
If you suspect you have Chlamydia, it is vital that you go for screening and treatment. This is because untreated Chlamydia has long term effects on the body especially in women where it is the main cause of infertility, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and ectopic pregnancy. Use latex condoms to avoid contracting the disease.
Gonorrhea
Gonorrhea commonly referred to as the clap is the second most common STD. Women exhibit minimal symptoms such as vaginal discharge which can be mistaken for bladder infection.
The following symptoms occur in infected men:
Pain when passing urine
White or yellow discharge from the penis
It is good to note that gonorrhea can lead to throat infection in both sexes when it is transmitted through oral sex. Untreated gonorrhea causes serious complications in women like those of Chlamydia.
This STD is treated using antibiotics but a cocktail of drugs is required to treat resistant strains. The emergence of Super gonorrhea, a strain that resistant to most antibiotic treatment is causing serious concern in the medical field.
Syphilis
This is an STD that is caused by Treponema palladium (a bacterium) results into severe complications if it is not treated. An initial symptom of this disease is the appearance of painless sores on sexual organs.
The sores may disappear but this does not mean you are healed; the disease will manifest itself with serious symptoms in the late stages when it has permeated your whole body.
The following are complications arising from untreated syphilis:
Organ damage
Problems of the heart and nervous system
In expectant mothers it causes stillbirth and physical deformities in the born child.
Syphilis is easily treated using penicillin. Condoms reduce but don’t eliminate the transmission of this disease because they cannot cover all areas on the sexual organ affected by sores.
Genital Herpes
There are two types of viruses that cause herpes: HSV2 and HSV1. Genital herpes are caused by HSV2. Herpes can also be transmitted through oral sex.
Symptoms of herpes include:
blisters around the rectum and genitals that break to form tender sores which take four weeks to heal. Symptoms will recur after two months if the disease is not treated. Herpes is treated with antiviral drugs that help suppress the symptoms but don’t cure the disease.
The virus can be transmitted to babies by expectant mothers during delivery which if not treated may result into mental retardation. Use of latex condoms reduces the risk of contracting this disease.
Genital warts
Genital warts are also referred to as condylomata acuminate are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). The first symptoms of genital warts are several small, hard but painless bumps around the anus or vaginal area.
If untreated the bumps grow and become painful. An expectant mother can pass this disease to her baby who may develop warts in the larynx after being born!
The warts are removed by laser treatment, freezing or thermal treatment. Very big warts require surgical removal.
Treatment with interferon injection is necessary if the warts keep recurring. Genital warts are not curable; this implies that even if the warts are removed the virus can still be transmitted between sexual partners.
Trichomoniasis Is an STD that is more common in women than men because men don’t exhibit symptoms.
The symptoms in women are:
Frothy vaginal discharge
Painful sexual intercourse
Powerful vaginal odor
Itching on the vagina
These symptoms mimic those of bacterial vaginosis hence Trichomoniasis is commonly mistaken for this disease. Since men don’t show any symptoms, treatment should involve both sexual partners in a heterosexual relationship.
Addendum
Although the STDs described are the most common ones there are more than twenty five STDs that afflict humanity like human immunodeficiency virus (HIV),cytomegalovirus infections, crabs (public lice) and bacterial vaginosis.
Most annual physical exams don’t include screening for STIs unless you place a request. Some STIs are asymptomatic (have no manifestation of symptoms) and therefore certain high risk groups of people should go for annual screening. Expectant mothers should also be screened to prevent possible infection of their unborn child.
The anatomy of women makes them more susceptible to STIs infection than men. But women can prevent being infected by using female condoms each time they have sexual intercourse.
Preventing STIs by having oral sex still exposes you to hepatitis B, herpes, syphilis and gonorrhea. Use a dental dam or latex condom during oral sex. Some STIs like public lice and scabies also spread through skin contact.
All viral STDs (HPV, Hepatitis B, Genital warts, Herpes, HIV) are incurable but manageable while bacterial STDs (Syphilis, Chlamydia, Gonorrhea) are curable.
Insecticides are used to cure scabies and public lice. Syphilis infection is highest among men who have sexual male partners, accounting for nearly seventy percent of reported infections.
A high percentage of sexually active people become infected with HPV at some point in their life without knowing: this is because a good immune system will get rid of most strains of nonaggressive HPV on its own.
Since HPV affects the cervix, it is recommended that women should undergo routine Pap smear tests to detect any changes in the walls of the cervix.
To effectively prevent being infected by an STD practice ABC:
A Abstain
B Be faithful to your sexual partner
C Condom use
Conclusion
Living with an STI will take a toll on you physically, emotionally and affect your romantic relationship. Untreated STIs cause serious health complications whose damage may be irreversible and make you vulnerable to HIV infection.
For instance untreated HPV may cause cervical cancer in women and untreated syphilis causes liver failure in both men and women. If you are unlucky to be diagnosed with an STD get treated promptly and consult your doctor on ways of protecting yourself from being infected again.
