Signs of STD

The term "women" is used in this article to refer to people who identify as female and have the typical reproductive organs of a cisgender woman. We recognize that some people who identify as women do not have the same anatomy as that depicted in this article. A sexually transmitted disease (STD) is a symptomatic infection that is spread primarily through sexual contact. Women can experience different STD symptoms than men. Knowing the signs that may indicate an infection can help you seek medical care and appropriate treatment. Read on to learn about the common symptoms of STDs in women, as well as information on treatment and prevention. Fuse / Getty Images STD Causes The three types of pathogens (organisms that cause infection) that are often sexually transmitted are: A person who is infected with one of these pathogens can transmit it to another person during vaginal, anal, or oral sex. However, some can also be spread

The term "women" is used in this article to refer to people who identify as female and have the typical reproductive organs of a cisgender woman. We recognize that some people who identify as women do not have the same anatomy as that depicted in this article. A sexually transmitted disease (STD) is a symptomatic infection that is spread primarily through sexual contact. Women can experience different STD symptoms than men. Knowing the signs that may indicate an infection can help you seek medical care and appropriate treatment. Read on to learn about the common symptoms of STDs in women, as well as information on treatment and prevention. Fuse / Getty Images STD Causes The three types of pathogens (organisms that cause infection) that are often sexually transmitted are: A person who is infected with one of these pathogens can transmit it to another person during vaginal, anal, or oral sex. However, some can also be spread

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) that is contracted when the body touches a sore on a sexual partner with syphilis during vaginal, anal, or oral sex. Other bodily fluids can also carry infection. Syphilis progresses in four stages, each with its own signs and symptoms. Syphilis can be a serious disease, but it's very easy to cure when it's found and treated early. This article provides an overview of syphilis symptoms in cisgender women, how it's diagnosed, and how to prevent getting syphilis. Jim Craigmyle / Getty Images What Is Syphilis? Syphilis is an STI caused by the bacteria Treponema pallidum , which is spread through sexual contact or from a pregnant person to their baby. If syphilis is treated early, it's highly curable. But if it isn't, it can become serious and lead to problems with vision and hearing, weakness or paralysis, mental confusion, or dementia. Syphilis symptoms can go away for

AIDS is the third and most severe stage of HIV, which damages your immune system. All types of immune system problems can increase your risk of infections or serious illnesses. But AIDS is not an autoimmune disease. Read on to learn how HIV and AIDS affect the immune system and how they differ from autoimmune diseases. An autoimmune disease is a condition in which your immune system targets and attacks healthy body tissues, organs, and cells. A healthy immune system protects you against external threats that can lead to illness. Examples of such invaders include bacteria, viruses, toxic substances, and many other foreign agents. Autoimmunity is different. If you have an autoimmune disease, your immune system may incorrectly target healthy cells. The problem occurs in the absence of any infection or external threat. Autoimmune disorders can affect almost any part of your body. While there's no single known cause of autoimmune diseases, researchers think that both genetic and envir

THURSDAY, July 28, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Efforts to end the global HIV epidemic have slowed as money and attention go toward fighting COVID-19, a new report shows. Among the concerns are that HIV testing has slowed or stopped in places dealing with COVID-19 surges. HIV infections have climbed in parts of Asia and the Pacific, where they had been falling. A global decline in new infections is leveling off instead of dropping as it had been for years, endangering the U.N. goal of fewer than 370,000 new HIV infections by 2025. Last year, there were still 1.5 million. About 650,000 people died last year from AIDS-related illnesses, the report revealed. Disparities continue to grow for women and girls. In sub-Saharan Africa, women and teen girls are three times as likely to get HIV as boys and men. A teen girl or woman was newly infected every two minutes last year, the Associated Press reported. Meanwhile international aid has dropped, leaving low- and middle-income countries with $8 b

No doubt, it makes sense that you want to avoid contracting an STI like HIV. But there's a thin line between taking proper precautions to avoid contracting HIV and having an irrational fear of HIV that actively interferes with your quality of life, love, and love-making. On one side of the line is a responsible sex-haver, and on the other side of the line is a person with HIV phobia. HIV phobia can be a painful type of anxiety for both the person with the phobia and their loved ones. Know this: Help is available and there are solutions. "HIV phobia is an intense fear of getting HIV," says Dr. Emily Rymland, DNP, FNP-C, clinical development manager at Nurx. Specifically, the fear of contracting the virus even if you are very low risk. In other words, the fear is both extreme and irrational. "It's a fear that can interfere with a person's ability to engage in and fully enjoy sex," she explains. Although it's wise for people to take measures to prevent

Mycoplasma genitalium (MG) is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) with many of the hallmarks of its better-known counterpart, chlamydia. You can have MG without knowing it, or have symptoms; it can affect men and women, and it can be treated with antibiotics. However, unlike chlamydia, we only have a limited number of antibiotics to treat it, due to a quirk in its cellular structure and the growing threat of antibiotic resistance. The antibiotics we need to use with resistant MG can also, uncommonly, have serious side-effects. Here's what you need to know about this common STI. What is it? How do I get it? How common is it? MG can affect both men and women, and is passed from person to person via their body fluids when they have sex. That can be via penile-vaginal sex or via penile-anal sex. Transmission via oral sex isn't thought to be a big factor. Several studies tell us MG is common, perhaps as common as chlamydia. UK and US data show 1-2% of

No doubt, it makes sense that you want to avoid contracting an STI like HIV. But there's a thin line between taking proper precautions to avoid contracting HIV and having an irrational fear of HIV that actively interferes with your quality of life, love, and love-making. On one side of the line is a responsible sex-haver, and on the other side of the line is a person with HIV phobia. HIV phobia can be a painful type of anxiety for both the person with the phobia and their loved ones. Know this: Help is available and there are solutions. "HIV phobia is an intense fear of getting HIV," says Dr. Emily Rymland, DNP, FNP-C, clinical development manager at Nurx. Specifically, the fear of contracting the virus even if you are very low risk. In other words, the fear is both extreme and irrational. "It's a fear that can interfere with a person's ability to engage in and fully enjoy sex," she explains. Although it's wise for people to take measures to prevent