STIs and HIV
Bacterial Infections:
Syphilis | Gonorrhea | Chlamydia
Viral Infections:
Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) | Herpes | Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) | Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
The Bacterial Infections
Syphilis
How It Is Spread - Via oral, vaginal or anal sexual contact, and from mother to child during birth. Carried in saliva, vaginal secretions, pre-ejaculate, and semen.
Symptoms - Syphilis causes open, wet ulcers, often painful, that appear 3 - 10 weeks after infection and last for several weeks. The sores appear wherever the person is infected - genitals, anus, mouth, et cetera. In later phases, the disease can cause hair loss and flu-like symptoms, and eventually leads to neurological damage and death.
Treatment - This disease is easy to treat with antibiotics when it is diagnosed early. Visit the doctor whenever you find new growths or sores on your genitals.
Protect yourself against infection by using latex or polyeurethane condoms during vaginal and anal intercourse. Know your partner's history, and be honest with your partner about your own. Read the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Fact Sheet about syphillis by clicking here.
Gonorrhea
How It Is Spread - Via vaginal, anal, and oral intercourse. Carried in vaginal secretions, pre-ejaculate, and semen.
Symptoms - 80% of women and 10% of men show no symptoms. When symptoms do occur, they can begin within a week of infection. They may include painful urination, puss-like or discolored discharge, and tenderness of the genitals. Later, the infection may cause Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) in women, and can seriously interfere with pregnancy and childbirth.
Treatment - Gonorrhea can be treated with antibiotics. Protect yourself by using condoms during vaginal and anal intercourse, and condoms or dental dams during oral sex.
Chlamydia
How It Is Spread - Via vaginal, anal, and oral intercourse, as well as passed from mother to child during birth. Carried in vaginal secretions, semen, pre-ejaculate.
Symptoms - According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 75% of women and 50% of men with Chlamydia experience no noticeable symptoms; however the illness can be severe. Early symptoms may begin as early as 5 days after infection and can include cramping, bleeding, painful intercourse, or a yellowish, unpleasant smelling discharge in women; and puss or watery discharge, swollen or tender testicles, or burning during urination in men.
Chlamydia can lead to infertility in women, and can also lead to Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID) in women, a serious and sometimes life-threatening illness. In men, chlamydia may cause sterility.
Treatment - Chlamydia is easy to treat with antibiotics once it is detected. Regular visits to the doctor can help you diagnose it early to prevent long-term effects.
Protect yourself by using latex or polyeurethane condoms during vaginal and anal intercourse.
Click here for more information about chlamydia.
The Viral Infections
Human Papilloma Virus (HPV)
How It Is Spread - Via vaginal, anal and (less commonly) oral intercourse, and through skin to skin contact of infected areas, and from mother to child during birth. Carried on the skin and mucus membranes of infected individuals.
Symptoms - Of the 100+ strains of this virus, about 30 are transmitted via sexual contact. A few of these are known to cause visible genital warts. Other symptoms are rare. Strains that cause genital warts are least likely to cause cancers.
Treatment - Warts can be removed through a variety of methods, most rather expensive and fairly painful; wart removal is not always recommended by healthcare providers. Even if warts have been removed, it is not known for certain whether the person can still pass the viral infection on to others according to the CDC. There is no cure or treatment for the virus itself, although in most women the infection goes away on its own. However, there is a vaccine available in the United States that has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. This vaccine (called Gardasil) is approved for females between the ages of 9 and 26, although some healthcare providers offer it “off-label” to women who are older than 26. This vaccine (which some refer to as the “cervical cancer vaccines” even though it cannot prevent all types of cervical cancer) is highly effective at reducing the risk of acquiring 4 strains of HPV that are strongly associated with cervical cancer and genital warts. You can learn more about the vaccine by clicking here.
Of note: Women should get annual pelvic exams and Pap smears, which can serve as an initial detection. Men and women should regularly inspect their genitals for signs of infection. You may be able to reduce your risk of infection during vaginal and anal intercourse by using latex or polyeurethane condoms, and by using condoms or dental dams during oral sex. That said, because HPV is transmitted from skin to skin contact, it is unclear to what extent condoms and dental dams reduce HPV risk as they cannot cover all of one’s genital skin. Some healthcare providers feel that using the female condom may provide more protection than male condoms because a greater area of skin is covered by the female condom. Talk to your healthcare provider about this option. Know your partner's history and be honest about yours.
For more information, read our page about HPV.
Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV)
How It Is Spread - Via vaginal, oral and anal intercourse; and via kissing. Carried in vaginal secretions, pre-ejaculate, semen, saliva, blood, and on the skin surface.
Symptoms - A rash of blistery, often painful sores that appear between 2 and 20 days of infection. Person is infected as long as sores are present, and sometimes even when no sores are present.
Treatment - There is no cure for Herpes. Symptoms may be controlled with medication.
Protect yourself with latex or polyeurethane condoms during vaginal or anal intercourse, and dental dams or condoms during oral sex. Know your partner's history and be honest about your own. For more information, see The International Herpes Management Forum.
Heptatitis B Virus (HBV)
How It Is Spread - Via vaginal, oral, and anal intercourse, and kissing. Carried in vaginal secretions, pre-ejaculate, semen, saliva, and blood.
Symptoms - Symptoms generally appear between 45-140 days, typically about 4 months after infection, after the person has already been infectious for several weeks. They can include headache, extreme fatigue, nausea, and tenderness in the lower abdomen. Later, when the disease beings to affect the liver, it can cause jaundice and extreme liver dysfunction.
Treatment - There is currently no treatment or cure for HBV. While symptoms generally clear within 4-8 weeks, the infected person carries the virus for the rest of his or her life. Some people stay infectious, while others never are after the initial illness.
HBV is the only viral STI preventable with a vaccine. Get vaccinated, and protect yourself by using latex or polyeurethane condoms during vaginal or anal intercourse.
For more information, see The Hepatitis B Foundation.
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
How It Is Spread - Via vaginal or anal intercourse, from mother to child during birth or through breast-feeding. Also potentially transmitted through oral intercourse (still controversial!). Carried in semen, pre-ejaculate, vaginal secretions, blood, and breast milk.
Symptoms - No symptoms may appear for many years following infection. "Early" symptoms of HIV can include rapid weight loss, headaches, a thick, white coating of yeast on the tongue, chronic PID or yeast infections, and purple spots on the skin.
HIV causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Disease (AIDS), which weakens the immune systems and allows for the invasion of other diseases into the body.
Treatment - There is currently no cure for HIV; once infected, you carry the virus for the rest of your life. A combination of medications and healthy lifestyle can extend healthy life for decades. However, AIDS is a fatal disease with no known cure. For more information about testing, click here.
Protect yourself by using latex or polyeurethane condoms during vaginal and anal intercourse. For more information, see The Body.
Online STD Wizard
This online tool is based on the CDC STD treatment guidelines and makes this expert knowledge accessible to the public. No personal information is collected and the “quiz” can be taken online in complete privacy.The Wizard guides users through interactive questions and takes only 5 minutes to complete. At the end, each user receives STD screening advice tailored to their specific risk profile. People who take the quiz can learn about behaviors that may put them at risk. The STD Wizard was developed by the Medical Institute for Sexual Health in collaboration with STD experts in response to demand for online sexual health information.
