BACTERIAL STD'S SPREAD BY BODY FLUIDS
Chlamydia
- Facts: Fairly common on college campuses.
- Symptoms: Often silent. If symptoms, genital discharge, burning with
urination, abdominal or testicular pain
- Consequences: Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), infertility
- Treatment: Antibiotics, can be cured, partner may need to be treated.
- Prevention: Condoms offer good protection, partners may need to be
treated
Gonorrhea
- Facts: Fairly common in US but not as common on college campuses.
- Symptoms: Can be silent, especially in women. If symptoms, genital
discharge, painful urination, abdominal or testicular pain
- Consequences: PID, infertility, arthritis, heart problems.
- Treatment: Antibiotics, can be cured, partners need to be treated.
- Prevention: Condoms offer good protection
Other bacterial: Spyhilis, Chancroid, Trichomoniasis, Bacterial Vaginosis
(not always contracted sexually)
VIRAL STD'S SPREAD BY BLOOD / OTHER BODY FLUIDS
HIV (Human Immunodefiency Virus) & AIDS
- Facts: Increasing fastest among young people
- Symptoms: Most people show no symptoms for many years but can still
transmit the virus.
- Consequences: Development of opportunistic infections and full blown
AIDS, death.
- Treatment: No cure. Many antiviral drugs can decrease viral load in
the body, stave off infections and death.
- Prevention: Condoms offer good protection. No sharing of needles/syringes
or other body fluid to open skin/muucus membrane contact.
Hepatitis B
- Facts: Much more readily infectious than HIV
- Symptoms: Some people have no symptoms. If symptoms: fatigue, nausea,
jaundice and dark urine.
- Consequences: Can become chronic carriers, can cause progressive liver
disease, sometimes death.
- Treatment: Rest, good nutrition, symptom relief
- Prevention: Vaccine preventable. If partner is infected, condoms offer
some protection. No sharing of needles/syringes or other body fluid
to open skin/muucus membrane contact.
Other viral: CMV (not always contracted sexually), Molluscum Contagiosum
VIRAL STD'S SPREAD BY SURFACE CONTACT
Human Papilloma Virus (Genital Warts, HPV)
- Facts: Possibly the most prevalent STD on college campuses
- Symptoms: Can be silent. If symptomatic, soft warts shaped like miniature
cauliflower florets
- Consequences: Some strains cause cervical cancer in women, can cause
genital cancer in males
- Treatment: No cure. There are several methods for controlling/treating
the warts.
- Prevention: Condoms offer some protection, but uncovered skin might
shed the virus even with no visible lesions.
Herpes Simplex Types 1 and 2
- Facts: Very prevalent on college campuses. Type 2 usually associated
with genital herpes but type 1 can be present on genitals.
- Symptoms: Often silent. If symptomatic presents as painful blistery
sores, sometimes associated with fever/swollen glands in groin.
- Consequences: Recurrent episodes, problems for babies of infected
mothers
- Treatment: No cure. Anti-viral medications control or decrease symptoms.
- Prevention: No sexual contact during active stage. Condoms offer some
protection, but uncovered skin might shed the virus even with no visible
lesions.
OTHER STD'S
Pubic Lice, Scabies . Both can also be spread by close but not necessarily
sexual contact.
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