10 important Facts About Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD's) &
Sexually Transmitted Infections (ST
1. WHAT ARE SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASES (STDS)? Sexually
transmitted diseases are diseases that can be passed from person
to person through sexual contact. In this case sexual contact
means penis-vagina penetration, oral sex which is sexual contact
using the mouth, and insertion of the penis into the rectum
which is anal sex. Some of these diseases may be transmitted by
exchange of sexual fluids such as semen or vaginal discharge.
Some of the STD's result in open sores, and it can be spread by
contact with skin of someone else. There are also ways to
transmit these diseases in a non sexual way, an infected
pregnant woman can either give it to her baby during pregnancy,
or when the baby is being delivered. Drug abusers can transmit
the disease through sharing hypodermic needles that have been
used by an infected person. The seriousness of STD's varies,
some are cured easily by drugs, others need a combination of
treatments and drugs, whilst others have no cure, and the only
option is treatment.
2. WHAT ARE SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED IINFECTIONS (STI's)? Any
infection that is usually passed through sexual contact.
3.ARE THE TWO WORDS INTERCHANGEABLE. Fifteen years ago both
these categories came under one name Venereal Disease (VD). To
distinguish
between them they were separated into infections(STI) and
diseases(STD). Infection means that a germ, bacteria, parasite
or virus is present in the body. An infected
person does not necessarily have any symptoms, which means that
they do not usually feel ill..A disease is any abnormal
condition of the body or mind that causes
discomfort, dysfunction, or distress, in other words your body
tells you that you are unwell. This means that STI covers a
wider range than the term STD. STD
refers only to infections that are causing problems. Because
most of the time, people don't know they are infected with an
STI until they start showing symptoms of
disease, the AIDS Resource Center uses the term STD, even though
the term STI is also appropriate in many cases.
Let's see if we can simply un-muddy the waters here. Genital
herpes has two states when the blisters are present and when
they are absent. When they are present they are causing
symptoms, ie the blisters, at this stage it is an STD, and it is
that this stage that the infection is most likely to be spread
to another person.When the blisters are absent then there are no
symptoms, and this is then an STI, and the likelihood of an
infection is reduced. However HIV can be an infection, in the
sense that there may be no symptoms, when they develop symptoms
then they have AIDS which is an STD. However it is important to
remember that HIV infection can be spread at any time.
4.WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN STD'S AND HIV? A person who
is already infected with STD, has a higher risk of contracting
HIV if they have unprotected sex, without a condom. This risk is
greater if the STD causes open genital sores, as these wounds
provide a break in the skin which enables the HIV infection to
enter the blood stream. STDs that can cause genital ulcers
include genital herpes, syphilis, chancre, gonorrhoea,
trichomoniasis, and scabies.
5.WHY IS IT DIFFICULT TO RECOGNIZE THAT YOU MAY HAVE A STD.
First of all the majority of the people with STD have no
immediate symptoms and when they do have them it can be
misleading to diagnose as the symptoms can be confused with non
sexual diseases. Please note that this applies much more to
women than men.
6. WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON SYMPTOMS FOR WOMEN WHEN THEY ARE
SUFFERING FROM AN STD. unusual or A bad-smelling vaginal
discharge, severe itching or burning in the genital area,
unusual bleeding, pain in the pelvic region, pain during sex,
rashes on the genitals, open sores or warts on the genital area,
and/or recurrent urinary tract infections.
7. WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON SYMPTOMS FOR MEN WHEN THEY ARE
SUFFERING FROM AN STD. In men, the most common symptoms of STD
are: pain when urinating, open sores or warts on the genital
area, genital rash discharge from the penis, and/or pain in the
scrotum/testicles.
8. WHAT ARE THE OTHER SYMPTOMS NOT CONNECTED TO THE GENITALS The
following symptoms are present in both men and women. discharge
from the anus, swelling of the groin, jaundice (yellowing of the
skin and whites of the eyes), oral thrush (white tongue),
arthritis, sores or bumps in and around the mouth, and
generalized rashes.
9 CAN I CONTRACT STI AS A RESULT OF MUTUAL MASTERBATION Yes you
can and listed below are some examples. Bacterial Vaginosis
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Herpes Simplex Human Papilloma Virus (HPV,
Warts) Pubic Lice Scabies
10. CAN I PREVENT GETTING STI or STD The only foolproof way is
abstinence from sex. A condom merely reduces the risk, and it
must be used every time, before any sexual fluids are exchanged.