What is an STD/STI/HIV/AIDS & Hepatitis

Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD)/Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) or Venereal Disease, any of several infectious diseases almost always transmitted through sexual contact.

HIV/AIDS: H - Human - because this virus can only infect human beings. I - Immuno-deficiency - because the effect of the virus is to create a deficiency, a failure to work properly, within the body's immune system.  V - Virus - because this organism is a virus, which means one of its characteristics is that it is incapable of reproducing by itself. It reproduces by taking over the machinery of the human cell.

The incidence of STDs/STIs has risen in recent years despite advances in diagnosis and treatment, possibly because of changes in sexual behavior (the SEXUAL REVOLUTION),

“Sexual Revolution, term denoting the sweeping changes in sexual mores in Western societies in the latter half of the 20th century.  It ranges from growing social tolerance of divorce, birth control, abortion, and premarital and extramarital sex, to movements for women's liberation and gay rights, to changing perceptions of men's and women's roles in the home and the workplace.”

The emergence of drug-resistant strains, symptomless carriers, lack of public education, and taboos that make patients reluctant to seek treatment.

Chlamydia

 Chlamydia is actually a group of different infections caused by different of the Chlamydia bacterium:

1.  Chlamydia pneumonia cause a type of walking pneumonia
2. Chlamydia psittacine causes a type of pneumonia caused by birds
3. Chlamydia trachomatis causes various sexually transmitted diseases

Condyloma

Condyloma is also known as: wart, genital wart, venereal wart, and all are caused by a virus called the human papilloma virus. 

Wartlike growth on genitals or anus:  a growth resembling a wart on the skin or a mucous membrane, usually of the genitals or anus.

Genital warts are caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). Papilloma viruses cause small growths (warts) on the skin and mucous membranes. Infection of the genital and anal regions with HPV can cause warts (ano-genital condyloma) on the penis, vulva, urethra, vagina, cervix, and around the anus (perianal).

More than fifty different types of HPV have been classified. These types are numbered. Several types, including 6 and 11, are associated with raised, rough, easily visible genital warts (especially in women). Other types are associated with flat warts.

The Symptoms Of  Condyloma

Genital warts first appear as small pink or red bumps on the vulva (lips of the vagina), vagina, cervix, penis shaft, urinary opening or rectum. They are usually painless, but some people may have itching, burning or slight bleeding from these areas.

 The time between exposure to the virus and the appearance of warts is not known. It could be anywhere from several weeks to several years before symptoms occur. Because of this, it is had to tell when and where you were exposed to the virus.

Sometimes vaginal infections and pregnancy can cause warts to grow and spread. One study showed that 20% of women with genital warts also had a vaginal infection. Unless that infection is treated, the warts may not go away.

Gonorrhea

• an infection that is spread through sexual contact with another person
• caused by a bacterium, Neisseria gonorrhoeae
• second only to Chlamydial infections in the number of reported cases. 

The Gonorrhea germs are found in the mucous areas of the body: 

• Genital tract
• Penis
• Rectum
• Throat
• Vagina

Risk Groups:

• Any person who is sexually active can be infected with Gonorrhea
• Common among younger people, ages 15-30, who have multiple sex partners

• Increases in Gonorrhea have been found among men who have sex with men

• Occurs more frequently in urban areas than in rural areas

 It is the most common reportable sexually transmitted infection in the United States, with an estimated 800,000 cases of Gonorrhea reported annually.

 Symptoms Of Gonorrhea

Woman

• Painful or frequent urination.
• Anal itching, pain, bleeding, or discharge.
• Vaginal discharge (with pus).
• Irritation of the external opening of the vagina (vulva), itching, swelling, redness, and soreness.

• Heavy menstrual bleeding.

• Bleeding between menstrual periods.

• Lower abdominal discomfort.

• Infection of the Bartholin's glands.

• Fever, Sore throat (rare).

• Painful sexual intercourse.

• Infection of the lining of the eyes ( conjunctivitis) (rare).

Men

• Thick discharge from the penis (clear or milky at first, and then yellow, creamy, and excessive, sometimes blood-tinged).
• Painful or frequent urination.
• Anal itching, pain, bleeding, or discharge.
• Sore throat (rare).
• Infection of the lining of the eyes ( conjunctivitis) (rare).

Herpes

Herpes is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV).

Genital herpes infection is very common and on the increase in the United States.  Nationwide 45 million people aged 12 and older (1 out of 5 of the total adolescent and adult population) are infected with HSV-2.

It is more common in women (1 out of 4) than in men (1 out of 5) possibly because male to female transmission is more efficient than female to male transmission.

HSV-2 infection is also more common in areas of high socio-economic disadvantage, facing fundamental issues of health such as:

• access to quality health care
• poverty
• living in communities with a high
• prevalence of STDs
• illicit drug use

 Statistics:

• An estimated 40 million people have genital herpes which is a chronic viral infection
• About 500,000 new people get symptomatic herpes each year
• There are even more people without symptoms

The Symptoms Of  Herpes

Symptoms of herpes usually develop within 2 to 20 days after contact with the virus, although it could take longer. These symptoms may last up to several weeks, varying from one person to the next. In many people, the first infection is so mild that it goes unnoticed. In others, the first attack causes visible sores. Even so, subsequent recurrences of the disease may cause lesions. When the sores are completely healed, the active phase of infection is over. Healing of the skin usually leaves no scars. In either case, the virus retreats into the nervous system and lies dormant.

The virus starts to multiply when it gets into the skin cells. The skin becomes red and sensitive, and soon afterward, one or more blisters or bumps appear. The blisters first open, and then heal as new skin tissue forms. During a first outbreak, the area is usually painful and may itch, burn or tingle. Flu-like symptoms are also common. These include swollen glands, headache, muscle ache or fever. Herpes may also infect the urethra, and urinating may cause a burning sensation.

Lymphogranuloma Venereum

Lymphogranuloma Venereum is an uncommon disease with about 200 reported cases per year.

Incubation period is 5 to 20 days.

Lesion: Transient vesicles on penis or vagina that are often unnoticed and patients do not usually seek medical advice.

Clinical manifestations: Two to six weeks after the vesicular lesions have healed, inguinal lymphadenopathy appears which leads to the formation of “bubos” (inflamed lymph nodes especially in the groin area) containing the organism. Bubos are bilateral in one third of patients and are very painful. In 25% of cases, the inguinal ligament (Pompart) cleaves the swelling (known as “groove's sign”). The bubos contain infected, purulent material that must be aspirated or they may rupture. The great danger in treatment is inducing a non-healing draining fistula; hence one should aspirate the fluid by piercing the skin through healthy tissue and draining the fluid every 3-4 days. Women do not have involvement of inguinal nodes because the vagina drains towards the perirectal glands. Instead, proctitis and/or rectal fistulas are seen. These may also be seen in individuals who engage in rectal intercourse.

 Symptoms of Lymphogranuloma Venereum

Syphilis

Primary Syphilis

The first symptom of primary syphilis is an ulcer called a chancre ("shan-ker"). The chancre can appear within 10 days to 3 months after exposure, but it generally appears within 2 to 6 weeks. Because the chancre may be painless and may occur inside the body, the infected person might not notice it. It usually is found on the part of the body exposed to the infected partner's ulcer, such as the penis, vulva, or vagina. A chancre also can develop on the cervix, tongue, lips, or other parts of the body. The chancre disappears within a few weeks whether or not a person is treated. If not treated during the primary stage, about one-third of people will go on to the chronic stages.

 Secondary syphilis

A skin rash, with brown sores about the size of a penny, often marks this chronic stage of syphilis. The rash appears anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks after the chancre appears. While the rash may cover the whole body or appear only in a few areas, it is almost always on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet.

Because active bacteria are present in the sores, any physical contact—sexual or nonsexual—with the broken skin of an infected person may spread the infection at this stage. The rash usually heals within several weeks or months.

Symptoms of Syphilis

The initial infection causes an ulcer at the site of infection. The bacteria, however, move throughout the body, damaging many organs over time. Medical experts describe the course of the disease by dividing it into four stages-primary, secondary, latent, and tertiary (late). An infected person who has not been treated may infect others during the first two stages, which usually last 1 to 2 years.

In its late stages, untreated syphilis, although not contagious, can cause serious heart abnormalities, mental disorders, blindness, other neurologic problems, and death.

Ecneret Family Services, Inc.

465 West 162^nd Street                                          309 West Park Avenue 

South Holland, Illinois 60473                                 Aurora, Illinois 60506

You may e-mail us at: efsi@ureach.com

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