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What is Sexually Transmitted Diseases?
More than 30 viruses, bacteria and parasites cause STDs. Many of these organisms rely almost completely on sexual transmission to survive. In other words, if you have one of these infections, you most likely got it from sexual contact. The microbes include: Bacteria that cause gonorrhea (Neisseria gonorrhea) Bacteria that cause syphilis (Treponema pallidum) Bacteria that cause urethritis, cervicitis and pelvic inflammatory disease (Chlamydia trachomatis) Bacteria and intestinal parasites that cause rectal and anal pain, sometimes with severe diarrhea Single-celled organisms that cause urethritis, vaginitis, cervicitis and pelvic inflammatory disease (Trichomonas vaginalis) Viruses that cause...
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Also known as std, STDs, sexually transmitted infections, Venereal Disease, Venereal Diseases, crab lice
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Sexually Transmitted Diseases information from trusted sources:
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are infections acquired by sexual contact. You can catch sexually transmitted diseases any time you have unprotected sex with a partner who is already infected. The organisms that cause sexually transmitted diseases may pass from person to person in blood, semen or vaginal fluids. Read more on
www.mayoclinic.com
Crab Lice
Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are infections that you can get from having sex with someone who has the infection. The causes of STDs are bacteria, parasites and viruses. There are more than 20 types of STDs, including Most STDs affect both men and women, but in many cases the health problems they cause can be more severe for women. If a pregnant woman has an STD, it can cause serious health problems for the baby. Read more on
www.nlm.nih.gov
Sexually transmitted infections
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are diseases passed on through intimate sexual contact. They can be passed on during vaginal, anal and oral sex, as well as through genital contact with an infected partner. Common STIs in the UK include chlamydia, genital warts and gonorrhoea. Read more on
www.nhs.uk
Venereal disease research laboratory
To screen for or diagnose an infection with the bacterium Treponema pallidum, which causes the sexually transmitted disease (STD) syphilis Read more on
www.labtestsonline.org
Sexually Transmitted Diseases - Information from CDC
by BSB Well - 2010 Read more on
www.cdc.gov
Sexually transmitted disease - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A sexually transmitted disease (STD), also known as a sexually transmitted infection (STI), or venereal disease (VD), is an illness that has a significant ... Read more on
en.wikipedia.org
Sexually Transmitted Diseases Causes, Symptoms, Treatments – on ...
Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs, venereal diseases) are among the most common ... Consequently, lists of STD's can vary, depending on whether the STD is ... Read more on
www.emedicinehealth.com
About Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs)
You've probably heard lots of discouraging news about sexually transmitted diseases. The good news is that STDs can be prevented. Read more on
kidshealth.org
Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) in Women: Causes, Symptoms ...
Mar 11, 2011 ... Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are infections that can be transferred from one person to another through any type of sexual contact. ... Read more on
www.medicinenet.com
Sexually Transmitted Infections << Frequently Asked Questions ...
Nov 16, 2009 ... It is an infection passed from person to person through intimate sexual contact. STIs are also called sexually transmitted diseases, ... Read more on
www.womenshealth.gov
Contents
Complications
Prompt treatment prevents the complications of some STDs. Unfortunately, you may not notice the symptoms of primary infection, which is the easiest to treat. Possible complications include: Arthritis; Eye inflammation; Pelvic inflammatory disease; Infertility; Cervical cancer; Other cancers, including HIV-associated lymphoma and HPV-associated rectal and anal cancers; Opportunistic infections occurring in advanced HIV; Heart disease; Difficulty walking or maintaining balance; Personality change; Memory loss; Maternal-fetal transmission, which causes severe birth defects
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Coping and support
It's traumatic to find out you have an STD. You might be angry if you feel you've been betrayed, or deeply ashamed if there's a chance you infected others. At worst, an STD can cut decades off your life expectancy, even with the best care in the world. Between those extremes is a host of other potential losses trust between partners, plans to have children, and joyful embrace of your sexuality and its expression.
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www.mayoclinic.com
Preparing for your appointment
Not many people feel comfortable sharing the details of their sexual experiences, but the doctor's office is one place where you must. So take a deep breath, relax and answer your doctor's questions completely and honestly.
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www.mayoclinic.com
Prevention
Screening Testing for a disease in someone who doesn't have symptoms is called screening. Most of the time, STD screening is not a routine part of health care. But there are exceptions: Everyone. The one STD screening test suggested for everyone between the ages of 13 and 65 is a blood or saliva test for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the virus that causes AIDS. Most health care settings in the United States offer a rapid HIV test with same-day results. Pregnant women. Screening for HIV, hepatitis B, chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis generally takes place at the first prenatal visit. A blood test to detect HSV type 2 infection is recommended for pregnant women with current or past partners...
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www.mayoclinic.com
Risk factors
Even between faithful and committed partners, STDs can happen. It's possible to be infected with herpes, for example, and never realize it, then pass the infection to your long-term partner. More often, though, people get sexually transmitted infections from casual or new partners.
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www.mayoclinic.com
Symptoms
Sexually transmitted diseases have a wide range of symptoms. The signs and symptoms listed here are the most common, but they occur in different combinations with different infections. The timelines from infection to symptoms and from initial infection to advanced disease also vary from disease to disease.
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www.mayoclinic.com
Tests and diagnosis
If your sexual history and current signs and symptoms suggest that you have an STD, laboratory tests can identify the cause and detect co-infections you might also have contracted.
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www.mayoclinic.com
Treatments and drugs
Antibiotics can cure many sexually transmitted bacterial and parasitic infections, including gonorrhea, syphilis, chlamydia and trichomonas. A single antibiotic dose, given orally or injected, is generally all you need to stop gonorrhea when it's limited to the urethra and cervix. Typically, you'll be treated for chlamydia at the same time because the two infections often appear together. Chlamydia treatment consists of a seven-day course of an oral antibiotic.
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www.mayoclinic.com