STD Disease

Every day more than one million people around the world contract an STD (Sexually Transmitted Disease). The absence of severe symptoms, complications and contagion make it a public health problem.

What is STD? 

STDs are infections that are transmitted through sexual intercourse and contact - even if they can also be contracted through other pathways, such as blood transmission, sharing an infected syringe, or from mother to child pregnancy. There are about 30 viruses, bacteria and parasites that are transmitted sexually. A penis-vagina contact is not absolutely necessary: ​​the transmission can be done when in contact with the genitals, the skin, the fingers, the vagina, the anus or the mouth.

Some STDs do not cause little or no symptoms, so you can be infected and/or contagious without knowing it and feeling sick. For this reason, the WHO has changed the term STD (Sexually Transmitted Diseases, which implies that it is infected only when the disease is proven) in STD, hoping to encourage prevention and early management. 

How are STDs transmitted? 

  • Sexual intercourse (penis-vagina contact) is not necessary, sexual contact is sufficient. This is the reason why STDs are also often transmitted between male and female homosexual couples.
  • When blood, sperm or seminal fluid (fluid in which sperm are) and vaginal secretions come into contact with the genital, anal or oral mucosa of the partner - even if there is no penetration or ejaculation.
  • When these fluids come in contact with skin lesions (wounds, abrasions, pimples) of the partner - including microlesions in the mouth or throat - transmission is more common
  • When these fluids come in contact with the mucous membranes during menstruation. 


But also:
  • When using a used syringe or a needle belonging to a drugged and infected person.
  • When sharing sniffing equipment (straw), tattooing equipment or piercing with infected people.
  • The use of razors, toothbrushes, nail clippers, washcloths that have been in contact with an infected person are usually not sources of transmission but it is better to avoid them, certainly after recent contamination (when the viral load in microorganisms in the blood or mucous membranes is high).
  • Toilet seats can be contaminated for a short time, but microbes do not usually survive long on these types of surfaces. They are therefore never or rarely the cause of an STD. 


All these modes of transmission remain active even if there is no symptom or treatment.

What are the consequences for health? 

  •  While some STDs are easily curable, others are not, or less so. In the latter case, the treatments mitigate well the consequences of the disease, and the risk of transmission to another person, but do not cure it.
  •  In women, some STDs may affect the fallopian tubes so that narrowing, obstructions and/or adhesions may occur. Thus, complications such as chronic pelvic pain, ectopic pregnancies, and reduced fertility occur.
  •  Some STDs are transmissible from the mother to the fetus, which can cause serious complications and malformations.
  •  The immune system and the genital tract are weakened and more susceptible to other infections. An STD increases the risk of contracting another STD.
  •  Impairment of the immune system, joints, meninges and the nervous system are potential consequences of some STDs.
  •  In men, pain to urinate may persist and the risk of infertility is also present.

Symptoms of sexually transmitted diseases 

The greatest difficulty lies in the absence or the very great discretion of the symptoms.
Gene, irritation, discharge, itching and burning sensation in the genitals or in the anal area, pain in the lower abdomen or urination, cutaneous manifestations are signs which, if in doubt, should lead to the doctor. Only a gynaecological examination can highlight an STD.
 
In humans, the symptoms are similar. This does not mean that an STD has been contracted, and the absence of symptoms is also no indication that it is not a carrier. Consulting is also essential in doubt.

How to treat them? 

As the treatments are specific to each pathology, a preliminary diagnosis is strictly necessary in order to institute the appropriate treatment.
In the presence of a single STI, it is always advisable to be examined in order to look for the possible presence of accompanying infections.

Prevention 

A reflection on the desire for sex with strangers and the use of condoms are the first and most important means of prevention against the transmission of STDs.
Screening is essential:
  • after taking a risk,
  • when starting a new relationship,
  • when you want to stop condom use in a stable relationship with the same partner
  • when considering pregnancy.
The slightest doubt must lead you to consult.
The chronicity of some STDs and the danger of contagion are frightening. The lack of information encourages misconceptions and can disrupt social and emotional life. Reasons for recognizing risky behaviour, and going beyond family, social and religious contexts to educate oneself about sexuality.