Sex is a normal and pleasurable part of life, however, it is possible that if one person has an infection it can pass to another person through the close physical contact that happens when people have sex. Infections that are spread in this way are known as sexually transmitted diseases (STD) or infections (STI).
You may not have considered the possibility of getting an infection. Being well-informed about STIs will help you to avoid them. If you feel you need more information then don’t be afraid to ask.
STDs are most commonly passed on through vaginal, oral and anal sex. You don’t need to have a lot of sexual partners to get an STD although having multiple partners increases your risk of infection.
Common symptoms of an STD are:
Note: Symptoms, however, can vary from infection to infection and many STIs show no symptoms at all. It is not uncommon to have more than one infection at the same time.
Some STDs can be completely cured if found early enough and may only require you to take an antibiotic. However, if left untreated infections can be painful and uncomfortable or, at worst, cause permanent damage to your health and fertility.
How to avoid STDs
Of course, the best way to avoid STDs and pregnancy is abstinence (not have sex). If you choose to be sexually active, using a condom (male or female) correctly EVERY TIME you have sex will reduce the risk of transmission of some STDs, including HIV. However, there are also several things that you can do to make sex safer.
Be Prepared
How is it passed?
It is passed on by unprotected vaginal, oral or anal sex, when sharing sex toys or by a mother to her baby at birth.
Signs and Symptoms
About 60% of men and 80% of women with Chlamydia have no symptoms at all. Often symptoms are very mild and go unnoticed, but typical signs of infection with Chlamydia experienced by men or women include:
Tests and Treatment
Usually, at FPCD clinics, a simple urine test is done.
Chlamydia is easily treated with antibiotics. To avoid reinfection, sexual partners should also be treated.
If untreated, Chlamydia can spread to other reproductive organs causing serious health problems such as pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy and infertility (unable to have children).
How is it passed?
It is passed on by unprotected vaginal, oral or anal sex, sharing sex toys, or passed from a mother to her baby at birth.
Signs and Symptoms
Many people with gonorrhea, particularly women, show no symptoms. Symptoms can be mild and go unnoticed, but typical signs of infection include:
Tests and Treatment
Usually a swab is taken from the vagina or tip of the penis or a sample of urine may be taken. The swab may feel a bit uncomfortable but should not be painful.
Gonorrhea is easily treated with antibiotics. To avoid re-infection, sexual partners should also be treated.
If untreated, gonorrhea can infect other reproductive organs in men and women and lead to serious health problems such as pelvic inflammatory disease or ectopic pregnancy, which can affect fertility.
How are they passed?
Genital warts are passed on through unprotected vaginal or anal sex, by sharing sex toys or direct skin-to-skin contact.
Signs and Symptoms
Not everyone with the virus will develop visible warts but they can still infect others. Genital warts can appear weeks, months, or years after sex with an infected person. When warts are present they are usually painless but may cause some inflammation. Warts can be flat, smooth, small bumps or larger cauliflower-like lumps that occur on their own or in groups.
In women, they can appear anywhere around the vulva and anus, and also inside the vagina or anus, or on the cervix. In men, they can appear anywhere around the urethra, penis, scrotum or anus. They can also appear inside the anus.
Tests and Treatment
Usually warts can be seen with the naked eye. If they are suspected, but not obvious, the area is painted with a special solution to make them more visible.
Warts are easy to treat, but more than one treatment may be needed. Treatment can include covering the warts with a chemical lotion or cream, freezing them off or removing them by laser treatment or surgery.
Genital warts do not cause any serious health problems but the virus always remains in the body. No treatment can remove the virus completely.
Some types of the wart virus are linked to changes in cervical cells which could lead to cervical cancer. These changes can take many years, so it is important women have regular pap smears, whether or not they have had genital warts. Only a few women with certain types of wart virus in their cervix have the kind of cell changes linked with cancer. Men can also have cell changes linked with cancer.
NOTE: Never self-treat genital warts with over-the-counter remedies! Also, some medicines must never be used by pregnant women so be sure to tell your provider if you may be pregnant.
For more information visit the Center for Disease Control and Prevention website.
Women and Herpes
Millions of women with herpes have had healthy babies, however pregnant women with genital herpes can give the disease to their babies. It can be very serious when a woman gets herpes for the first time when she is pregnant. It is very important that the doctor and/or obstetrician be told if a woman or any of her partners has genital herpes.
How is it passed?
It is passed on by unprotected vaginal, oral or anal sex, through sharing sex toys or through direct skin-to-skin contact. You can get herpes from people who have the virus even if they have no symptoms.
Signs and Symptoms
Often symptoms don’t show or are very mild and go unnoticed, but typical signs of infection with the virus include:
Tests and Treatment
A swab is taken from one of the sores. The swab may feel uncomfortable but should not be painful. The first outbreak lasts from one or two weeks. Then, the sores begin to dry, form scabs, and heal.
Although there is no cure for herpes, there are drugs that your doctor can prescribe to help the sores heal faster and reduce the number of outbreaks. If you have sores:
National Herpes Hotline: (919)361-8488
Pubic Lice (Crabs)
Compared to other kinds of human lice, pubic lice move slowly. If you have sexual contact with a person who has crabs, you will almost certainly get them too; however people can get pubic lice without direct contact. Sometimes the lice or their eggs land on beds, towels or clothing when pubic hairs fall out. The crabs live in coarse body hair such as pubic and anal hair, chest, thigh and underarm hair. They sometimes live in eyebrows or eyelashes but NOT on head hair.
Scabies
Scabies is a skin infestation caused by tiny mites. It takes only 3 minutes for a female mite to burrow under the skin, where she lays her eggs. The mites can occur in any part of the body, but are generally seen in creases such as between fingers, on hands and wrists, underneath the buttocks and breasts, the genitals, skin folds and toes. Scabies is passed through close physical contact. Mites can live for a couple of days in fabric and dust and can be passed to others even if you don’t have any symptoms of infestation.
Signs and Symptoms
Scabies causes an itchy rash in the body’s skin creases, which may also be accompanied by tiny spots. Scabies can look exactly like other skin rashes.
Pubic lice can be accompanied by itchy skin. Black powder may appear in the underwear caused by mite droppings; tiny blood spots may be present as well. White eggs can be found on affected hair.
Tests and Treatment
For both scabies and pubic lice, the skin will be examined and a skin flake may be taken to test for mites or lice.
Scabies requires a prescription treatment. Talk to your medical provider or pharmacist about treatments that are safe for you, particularly if you are pregnant or if you are treating a small child. To avoid re-infection, close contacts or sexual partners should also be treated.
There are special ointments used for lice in brows and lashes.
For washable clothing, bedding, towels, rugs, and toys use the HOT cycle of the washer and dryer. Dry cleaning also works. Things that cannot be washed in hot water may be wrapped in plastic bags and sealed for 3 to 4 weeks.
How is it passed?
It is passed through unprotected vaginal, oral or anal sex, by sharing sex toys, direct skin-to-skin contact with someone who has syphilis sores or rashes, or from a mother to her unborn child.
What are the symptoms?
Primary Stage
Ten to ninety days after sex (usually 21 days) a painless single sore appears in the area where contact was made. The sore, called a chancre, usually feels hard at the edges. It does not hurt. The sore is full of germs. After 2 to 6 weeks, the sore goes away.
Secondary Stage
Six to eight weeks later, the secondary stage begins and lasts from 2 weeks to 6 months. Symptoms include swelling of lymph nodes, rashes, and a flu-like feeling. There may be sores on the hands or feet that look like flat, grayish warts, or white with red borders. The sores can spread the disease. After a couple of weeks, the sores disappear. At this point, serious damage that can’t be seen or felt affects the heart, nervous system, kidneys, eyes and brain.
Latent Stage
There may be no visible signs during the slow latent stage. While the disease is not usually spread during this period, silent damage goes on until treatment or death.
Tests and Treatment
There are blood tests to detect the bacteria that cause syphilis. The sores can also be tested. If you have had sex with a person who has syphilis you must be treated right away. Tests are usually repeated, and everyone treated for syphilis must return for tests.
There is a cure for syphilis. Penicillin is the drug of choice and is given by injection. Other antibiotics are also available if you are allergic to penicillin. The antibiotics can be given at any stage to prevent further damage. After you have been cured you can get syphilis again if you have sex with an infected person.
Women and Babies
Moms are tested for syphilis and other STDs during their prenatal care. Both mom and baby can be treated and cured during pregnancy.
Trich is passed through unprotected vaginal, oral or anal sex, possibly by sharing sex toys, or from a mother to her baby at birth.
Signs and Symptoms
Sometimes there are no symptoms, or they are so mild they go unnoticed. If there are signs they usually come 4 to 20 days after contact with an infected partner; however the signs can come 6 months or even years after infection.
Typical signs include:
Is there a test?
Yes. A swab is used to take fluid from the vagina or penis; the sample is observed under a microscope. A culture can be taken, but often takes longer and is more expensive. Sometimes trich is found around cells taken for a Pap smear. Male semen can also be checked for trich.
Is there a cure?
Trich is easily treated with an antibiotic called Metronidazole (Flagyl). To avoid re-infection, sexual partners must also be treated, even if they show no signs of infection.
Is it serious?
Women with trich may be more likely to have babies who are premature or are born too small to be healthy. In men, trich can irritate the prostate gland. For both men and women, inflammation of the genitals can make it easier to get other STD infections. If you have trich or any other STD, get treatment right away.
HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is the virus that causes AIDS. It is passed through blood, semen, vaginal fluids and breast milk. You risk getting the virus if you:
Babies born to HIV-infected women risk getting the virus before or during birth or through breast-feeding after birth. Currently there are medications that an HIV-infected pregnant woman can take to lower the chance of passing HIV to her infant before, during or after birth. Getting tested for HIV, and early entry into prenatal care can significantly reduce the risk of passing the virus to your baby.
HIV may also be passed through transfusions of infected blood, however it is very rare in countries where blood is screened for HIV antibodies. Hospital blood supplies have been tested and protected from HIV since 1985. Blood donation centers use clean needles once and then carefully dispose them.
Contact with saliva, tears, or sweat has never been shown to result in transmission of HIV. Casual contact through closed-mouth or "social" kissing is not a risk for spreading HIV. However, because of the possible contact with blood during "French" kissing, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) recommends against it with an infected person.
Be aware that you or your partner may have HIV and not know it. It can be months or years before an infected person will feel sick or have any serious signs of the virus. However, you can still pass it to others.
Family Planning is currently offering free HIV tests. Contact us at (509)662-2013 for more information and to set up an appointment.
Note: About one quarter of HIV-infected persons in the United States are also infected with hepatitus C virus (HCV). HCV is one of the primary causes of chronic liver disease in the United States.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Can I get HIV from getting a tattoo or body piercing?
You are at risk of HIV if instruments contaminated with blood are either not sterilized or disinfected, or are used inappropriately between clients.
Can I get HIV from mosquitoes?
There is no evidence of HIV transmission from mosquitoes or any other insects.
Can I get HIV while playing sports?
There is no risk of transmission during sports activities where bleeding does not occur. If someone is bleeding, they should not participate until the the wound stops bleeding, and is antiseptically cleaned and securely bandaged.
Are health care workers and patients at risk for HIV?
It is possible but rare. Health care workers are trained to practice infection control procedures and universal precautions which includes using protective barriers such as gloves, masks, aprons, gowns and protective eyewear.
Links
The CDC Info numbers below are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in English and Spanish: