STD Symptoms & Signs

More than half of all people will have some sort of sexually transmitted disease (STD) in their lifetime and half of those people will contract an STD before the age of 25, according to the American Social Health Association. One of the best ways to prevent getting an STD is to know how the diseases are contracted and their symptoms. Contact your doctor for testing if you experience the signs or symptoms.

HIV

HIV is an infection caused by the human immunodeficiency virus, which can become the deadly AIDS disease over time. HIV affects the body's ability to fight off infections and illness. The first symptoms of HIV may appear flu-like and include fever, headache, fatigue and rash. As the virus continues to replicate and spread, symptoms can become more severe: diarrhea, weight loss and cough. In the late stages of HIV, soaking night sweats, unexplained fatigue and swollen lymph nodes for up to three months can appear.

Chlamydia

Chlamydia results from a bacterial infection from the Chlamydia trachomatis bacteria in the genital tract. Chlamydia can often go unnoticed to those who are infected with it due to few symptoms occurring in its early stages. When symptoms do appear, they are often fleeting, making them easy to dismiss. Signs of chlamydia are pain during urination, testicular pain in men, vaginal discharge in women, as well as pain in the lower abdomen.

Gonorrhea

Neisseria gonorrhoeae bacteria in the genital tract cause gonorrhea. Symptoms typically appear within 10 days of infection but can take several months to show in some cases. This can cause infected persons to infect other people without knowing it. Symptoms of gonorrhea include pain during sex, frequent urination, burning or pain when urinating and cloudy discharge from the penis or vagina. Gonorrhea can also affect the eyes and throat, resulting in eye pain, discharge, swollen lymph nodes and sore throat.

Syphilis

The bacterium Treponema pallidum causes syphilis and affects the body's mucus membranes and genitals, and it can even spread to the heart and brain. The symptoms of syphilis come in four stages: primary, secondary, latent and tertiary. Symptoms in the primary stage appear between 10 days and three months into infection and include a sore where the infection was transmitted and swollen lymph nodes. During the secondary stage, which usually begins between two and 10 weeks after the sore appears, penny-sized sores appear on the body, and a fever may occur. During the latent stage, symptoms stop and may never reappear. If they do, this is the tertiary phase which may lead to stroke and aneurysm.

Prevention

The best preventative of STDs is to remain abstinent. If this is not an option, safe sex practices will not guarantee safety but can greatly reduce the risk. Participate in monogamous relationships and use protection (condoms) during any intercourse with your partner. Regular testing is important to insure that, if you are infected, you don't pass it on to anyone else.

References

• American Social Health Association
• Mayo Clinic
• Mayo Clinic - Syphilis