Do you have all the facts on major STIs?  Sarah Stefanson gives you the basics.It is important to know all you can about the infections you may encounter when you are sexually active.  Knowledge is power, after all, and reviewing your risk factors will help you avoid contracting one of these conditions.  When you know how to take the right precautions, sex can be an enjoyable activity, as it was intended, instead of a source of worry.

Viral Infections

Genital Herpes

The same virus family that causes cold sores also causes genital herpes.  Herpes is spread by skin-to-skin contact usually by vaginal, anal or oral sex, but also by kissing.  During a breakout, herpes will manifest as itching, redness, tingling, burning and small blisters which burst and create painful sores.  The initial outbreak is usually the worst and subsequent episodes usually become milder.  The virus remains in the body in a dormant stage between outbreaks and can be passed even when sores are not present.  Condoms can help prevent herpes infections, but because the virus can appear in areas that condoms do not cover, they are not 100 per cent effective.  Avoiding sexual contact during an outbreak is essential to prevent passing it along.  Medications are available to lessen the frequency and severity of outbreaks, but the virus is incurable.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

HIV is a virus that attacks the immune systems and causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).  Once the immune system is weakened to the point where a variety of life-threatening conditions and diseases can take over (an average of 10 years after infection), the patient has acquired AIDS.  The virus can be passed in a variety of ways including vaginal, anal and oral sex (lower risk with oral), needle sharing, blood transfusions and any other situation where bodily fluids (blood, semen, vaginal secretions and breast milk) are exchanged.  Symptoms are not a reliable method of diagnosing HIV, so regular STI testing is imperative for all sexually active individuals.  There is no cure for HIV/AIDS, but remarkable advances have been made in terms of treatments and infected individuals are now living longer, healthier lives.

Hepatitis B Virus

Hepatitis B is very common throughout the world.  Carriers of the virus can experience either short-term, acute infection or long-term chronic infection.  The definition of hepatitis is “inflammation of the liver” and Hep B can cause scarring, failure and diseases of the liver.  It can be spread through vaginal, anal and oral intercourse, from mother to baby or by sharing items that have come into contact with the blood of an infected person.  Hepatitis B often has no obvious symptoms, but an acute case can produce flu-like symptoms and a chronic can result in serious liver scarring and diseases like cirrhosis and liver cancer.  In 90 per cent of cases, acute Hepatitis B will be fought off by the body’s immune system and the patient can no longer pass the virus.  If it continues for longer than six months, it becomes chronic and patients can spread the virus for the rest of their lives.  A vaccine is available to prevent the infection.

Human Papilloma Virus (HPV)

HPV has been a hot topic in the media lately with the introduction of a vaccine to be administered to girls between the ages of 9 and 26.  There have been approximately 80 HPV viruses identified and it is though that up to 200 exist.  HPV can infect the skin’s surface, lining of the mouth, tongue, throat, tonsils, vagina, penis, cervix, and anus through skin-to-skin contact.  Complications resulting from HPV infection can include skin and genital warts and cervical cancer.  Condoms may not prevent all HPV infections since they do not cover all the areas that could be infected.  There is no cure for HPV, but preventative measures, including the vaccine, can be taken.


Fungal Infections

Yeast Infections

A yeast infection is not technically an STI since they are a normal part of many women’s lives, but the infection can be passed during sexual intercourse.  The vagina regularly contains a small amount of yeast, but sometimes conditions exist that cause the yeast to multiply resulting in an overgrowth referred to as candidiasis.  Many things can encourage a yeast infection including pregnancy, birth control pill use, menstruation, recent use of antibiotics, improperly treated diabetes and a compromised immune system.  Women with a yeast infection may experience burning, itching and a white cottage cheese-like discharge, while men may have burning during urination, itching, swelling and red spots on the tip of the penis and dry, peeling skin.  If any of these symptoms are present, the first step is to visit your doctor to have it properly diagnosed.  Over the counter treatments such as tablets or suppositories, creams and ointments are usually enough to treat the infection.  Sometimes prescription medications, usually taken in pill form, may fix the problem more quickly, but they usually have more side effects.

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get tested

If you are sexually active, it is important to get tested for STIs on a regular basis, especially since many serious infections could be present without showing any obvious symptoms.  Using condoms every time you have sex is imperative to preventing many sexually transmitted infections, but remember some infections can be passed by other methods as well.  For a more detailed view of all of the above infections, check out the very helpful and informative website sexualityandu.ca.


Sources:
sexualityandu.ca