There are many infections that come under this heading, what they have in common is that they are spread through sex. This means not only vaginal intercourse but also oral and anal sex. You don't have to be 'sleeping around' to get infected, although the more partners you have unprotected sex with, the more likely you are to get an infection. An infection could lie dormant or unnoticed in the body for quite some time before symptoms appear. So an infection is not necessarily a sign that a partner is being unfaithful as an infection from the past may be carried in the body without knowledge for several months.
Symptoms
1. Women: unusual discharge (leakage) from vagina. Some discharge is normal so there is no need to be concerned unless the discharge chges in colour, smell or texture or it begins to cause irritation.
2. Men: discharge from penis.
3. Sores, blisters, rash or irritation on or around the penis, vagina or anus.
4. Pain or burning sensation when passing urine.
5. Passing urine more often than usual.
6. Pain when you have sexual intercourse.
Some people do not experience any symptoms to certain diseases. If you are worried that a previous partner may have been infected it is always worth while to have a check-up.
Treatment
The disease or infection can be treated by your local GP or by a special clinic such as a GUM (genito-urinary medicine) clinic, STD clinic or special treatment centre.Your doctor or family planning unit can tell you where the nearest clinic is to you.
It is important to get treatment as soon as possible to avoid infecting your partner or anyone else. If they are left untreated, these infections can have dangerous long term effects and cause infertility in women. Always tell the doctor if you think you may be pregnant before treatment is taken. Some medications may affect the unborn child. Tell any partners that you have the disease as they may be infected too.
Self Help
1. Use a condom. The condom (and also the diaphragm for women) will help protect you against sexually transmitted disease.
2. Limit your partners. The more people that you have unprotected sex with, the higher your chance of getting an infection.
3. Pass urine and wash the genital area as soon as possible after sex to help avoid some diseases.
4. Be careful. If you or your partner have any symptoms then it is best not to have sex until you have had a check-up.
HIV is a virus which causes AIDS. It survives in body fluids such as blood, semen, vaginal and cervical fluid. It can be passed through sexual intercourse (vaginal or anal) or by getting infected blood into the bloodstream of an uninfected person. This can happen through sharing needles, syringes and other drug injecting equipment. The virus can also be passed from a pregnant woman to her unborn baby. Current figures suggest that 1 in 5 or 6 babies born to HIV positive women are infected with the virus.
AIDS is caused when the HIV virus breaks down the body's defence system so that it cannot fight certain infections. This means that AIDS patients are more susceptible to develop certain types of cancer and serious infections of the lungs, digestive system, central nervous system and skin. These illnesses can be fatal.
People with the HIV virus may look and feel perfectly healthy for many years but they can still infect others with the virus. Most people with HIV eventually develop AIDS, half within ten years.
There is no cure yet for AIDS. There is, however, possible to treat the diseases that a person with HIV or AIDS can contract which are life threatening to them.
Prevention
1. Using a condom (ie. using it safely and correctly) will reduce your risk of getting or passing on the HIV virus through sexual contact.
2. Oral sex has a much lower risk of HIV transmission and non-penetrative sex has very little risk.
3. Sharing drug injection equipment is believed to have infected 1 in 10 of the HIV positive people in the UK. Avoid sharing equipment wherever possible. It is best to use a new needle and syringe for every injection. At the very least sterilise or clean equipment to lower the risk of infection.
4. Any procedure which pierces the skin with unsterilised equipment could transfer the HIV virus. Processes such as ear-piercing, tattooing and acupuncture should be carried out by an accredited professional who uses disposable needles.
5. It could be possible to contract the HIV virus from sharing toothbrushes or razors. Always keep your own items separate and don’t use anyone else’s toothbrush or razor.
If you follow common sense guidelines it is very difficult to catch HIV.
-You cannot become infected with HIV by sharing knives, forks, toilet seats or towels.
-Shaking hands and hugging will not pass on the virus.
-HIV cannot be contracted in swimming pools or by insect bites or dogs or cats.
-There is no risk in donating or receiving blood in industrialised countries. All blood is screened and checked before use.
Symptoms
These can appear any time from a few days to six weeks after contact with the infection. Some women get not symptoms at all so visit your doctor if there is a possibility that you have had sex with someone carrying one of these infections.
-Abnormal discharge
-Inflammation around the genital area
-Desire to pass urine more frequently
-Pain or burning sensation on passing urine
Treatment is available for most of these conditions.
Symptoms
-Small painful blisters appearing on or around the genital area. These usually heal within one or two weeks.
-Other symptoms which you may experience include; itching in the genital area, flu-like symptoms (eg. headache, backache, temperature), pain or burning sensation when passing urine.
These symptoms usually occur 4-5 days after infection. Further outbreaks may occur but they will often be less severe than the first.
Treatment
There is no cure for herpes but there are medications which can help ease the pain and ward off further outbreaks.
Genital herpes may lead to changes of the cervix so women who suffer from herpes should go for regular smear tests.
Symptoms
Women
-Unusual discharge from the vagina.
-Burning feeling when passing urine.
-Pain in the abdomen.
-Sometimes there may be irritation or discharge from the anus.
Most women do not get any symptoms at all.
Men
-Burning pain on passing urine.
-Yellow discharge from the penis.
-Sometimes there may be irritation or discharge from the anus.
About 1 in 10 men do not get any symptoms.
Treatment
Most cases of gonorrhoea can be cured with a course of antibiotics.
Others are resistant to antibiotics and so will need regular check ups to make sure that the infection has disappeared.
Symptoms
Stage One
-Flu-like symptoms including a cough and sore throat.
-Severe tiredness and loss of appetite. Pain in the joints.
These symptoms usually occur between 1 and 6 months after infection.
Stage Two
Jaundice is the most obvious symptom of hepatitis B. This stage may last for 2-8 weeks and may have various symptoms.
-Skin and whites of eyes turn a yellow clour.
-Urine turns to darkish brown and stools become light and clay coloured.
-Pain in the abdomen.
-Weight loss of up to 10 pounds (4.5kg) is common during hepatitis.
Treatment
There is a vaccine against hepatitis B, but no real cure once you have the infection. You may need to rest for several months until you are completely recovered.
Symptoms
Stage One
-A painless sore on or near the vagina or penis (sometimes found in the mouth or anus). This may appear between 1 and 12 weeks after infection and may last for 2 to 3 weeks.
Stage Two
-A rash may appear on the body, 2 to 6 months after contact. Flu-like symptoms may be experienced.
These two stages may not be noticeable.
In the late stages of syphilis the symptoms will have cleared but the disease will still be in the body. If it is left untreatd there may be permenent damage to the heart and brain. This is very rare.
Treatment
Syphilis can be treated with antibiotics but regular check-ups are advised to make sure the disease has been cured.
Symptoms
-Women may notice a yellow or white discharge which is quite smelly and can cause itching and irritation.
-Men have few or no symptoms. They can carry the parasite and infect women without knowing it themselves.
Treatment
The treatment will consist of a course of tablets from the doctor.
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