- Every person, regardless of their gender or sexual history, should be tested at least once annually. Even if you always have safe sex or you have not changed partners, an annual exam must be performed. Condoms do decrease the risk of transmission, but they do not eliminate the risk. And although you may trust your partner, you can never be sure if they have had a slip. For women, pap smears only test for cancer of the cervix, not for STDs. You must ask your doctor for a separate screening if you want to be tested. Also, birth control pills and other methods to prevent pregnancy do not protect against STDs.
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If you have multiple partners, regardless of whether or not you have safe sex, you should be tested as frequently as possible. If you change partners every three months, then get tested after every partner change. If you change partners weekly, then safety necessitates using condoms and getting tested monthly.
Before getting involved with a new partner, ask him or her to get tested and find out his or her history. If you suspect your new partner has been cheating on you or is not as safe as he or she said, get tested immediately. Encourage them to be tested as well. - You should never have sex without a condom unless you and your partner are completely monogamous. If you do have unsafe sex or an accident happens, such as the condom breaking, you should both get tested.
