Sexually transmitted diseases: types, causes, and prevention

Sexually Transmitted Disease

Sexual Transmitted Disease

Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) refers to illnesses or infections that are spread through human sexual behaviors and are also known as venereal disease or sexually transmitted infections. These diseases usually occur through a variety of ways including anal sex, vaginal intercourse and oral sex with the most common means being through sexual intercourse with an infected person.

There are various types of sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhea, syphilis, genital herpes, Chlamydia, Trichomoniasis, and HIV / AIDS. However, the main causes of sexually transmitted diseases are viruses, parasites, and bacteria. While these diseases affect both men and women, they are usually severe in women than men.

Though most of these diseases are treatable, some of them still lack effective cures like Hepatitis B and C, and HIV / AIDS. In the past few years, STDs have become among the most common infectious illnesses and one of the major causes of death in America. Consequently, it is important to explore the various types of these diseases, their causes, spread of the illnesses, their treatment, and preventive measures.

Spread of Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Sexually transmitted diseases spread rapidly because they affect both men and women of all ages regardless of their background, social status, and race. These diseases have continued to increase in the recent past because people are increasingly becoming sexually active at a younger age, ignore the use of preventive methods, and have multiple sexual partners. Furthermore, the spread of the disease is also associated with the fact that infected people can transmit the diseases without having any symptoms (Stoppler & Davis, n.d.). On the other hand, sexually transmitted diseases are sometimes passed from infected mothers to their children before, during, and straight away after birth.

Throughout the research paper, I will use analyses conducted by various medical agencies and health professionals to explore these diseases in details. The paper will identify the reasons for the increased spread of these diseases and the preventive measures to help curb this growing problem.

Types of STDs

As previously mentioned, there are various types of sexually transmitted diseases with divergent cause, symptoms, treatment, and preventive measures. They include

Gonorrhea

This is a bacterial infection that is transmitted by sexual contact through an organism known as Neisseria Gonorrheae. As one of the oldest known STDs, the symptoms of gonorrhea include frequent urination, burning, itching, swelling of genitals, and a yellowish vaginal discharge (Stoppler & Shiel, n.d.). For men it will show white, yellow or green discharge from the pennies, testicles inflammation, anal discharge and urethral itch (Sexually Transmitted Diseases Guide, 2005).

While the disease can result in serious pelvic infection if untreated, its treatment involves a single injection of penicillin. Consequently, the disease is easy to stop because its bacterium only survives in certain conditions.

Chlamydia

It is a bacterium that results in a sexually transmitted disease in a similar manner like gonorrhea especially in the way it spreads and the symptoms it produces. Chlamydia is mostly found in the urethra and cervix and can survive in the rectum and throat just like gonorrhea. Since many infected men and women normally lack the symptoms of this infection, they spread the disease unknowingly. However, some of the most common symptoms of the disease include uterine cervix infection and destruction of the Fallopian tubes. The treatment of this disease involves the use of antibiotics like doxycycline and azithromycin while prevention is through the use of a condom or protective barrier.

HIV / AIDS

HIV / AIDS is purported to began in 1981 when there was an out break of a rare cancer in men which was among the gays in the new York and California .The gay cancer was latter identified then named as Kaposi sarcoma, an infection diseases which latter became the phase of HIV / AIDS (Global Health Council, 2011).

From the biological perspective, HIV / AIDS can lead to increased rate of infection among the females, from the biological point-of-view an immature female is genitals tract is likely to tear up during the sexual activity hence increasing the chances of and risks of infection .The presence of unattended sexually transmitted infections enhances the chances if infection since in women there are no symptoms of the infections due to lack of knowledge amongst the young women their will be high chances of infection of HIV / AIDS (UNICEF 2004).

Since HIV / AIDS is a blood borne virus i.e. It can spread when the blood or the body fluids of an infected person comes to contact with blood, broken skin, or the mucus membrane of an infected person. The virus destroys certain cells called CD4+ cells which are found in the immune system hence the infection of HIV / AIDS results into the interference with the immunity system, hence a person cannot fight infections germs and diseases.

The HIV virus attacks and destroys the blood cells known as the CD4+ T cells which are central in the body's fight against diseases. The HIV can infect the cells and multiply before the immune system has responded. After this stage the body immune system will respond even if one may not physically see that. Here the body form antibodies against HIV and undergoes seroconversion and a person goes from HIV negative to HIV positive. This status may last for up to 10 years before one starts to see the opportunistic diseases infecting the body due to the extremely low immune system and it is at this stage that one is said to have AIDS. A stage where there are physically prominent and evident symptoms of diseases like TB, diarrhea, fever and all those mentioned above, this is when one can be said to have AIDS (CDC, 2007).

The upcoming of the antiretroviral drugs has developed to some impact on the biological effect of the drug; they can lead to intoxication of body cells and tissues in the human body. HIV / AIDS according to the research it has been indicated that it causes harm in the nerve cells in the brain (JNCI 2011).

In the previous years millions have died from the infection of HIV / AIDS which causes deliberate illness and premature death in the peak years of their productivity in their lifespan. HIV / AIDS has complex challenges to efforts to fight poverty, improve health, and promote development. The social implication of HIV / AIDS has a great effect on the affected families and even the community, HIV / AIDS brings about the diminishing returns to the families of the infected person and even dissolution of households. The most affected individuals are in the age gap of 25-50. This is the age gap where the labor supply is high, but because of the infection of the deadly disease the persons lack the ability to support their families and even to work in order to contribute in the economic development. At the same moment the treatment and health care cost tends to be so high hence leading to the consumption of the household income. The two combined effects greatly lead to reduced income with high cost of expenditure hence impoverishment of households and individuals. This leads to increased dependency rate.

The increased infection of HIV / AIDS has lead to staining in the community resources and overburdening the public and social support systems with the increased rate of infection the number of facilities and personnel that will be required in order to attend to the infected patients will increase. Hospitals, social services, health care workers will be inefficient hence the production of poor services in the various sectors (Global health council, 2011).

There has been tremendous changes in households and demographically and decrease in school attendance, the life expectancy of an adult has reduced because of increased death rate and also increased mortality rate. According to UNICEF (2004), its is stated the capacity of schooling services to decrease in the areas of high rate of HIV / AIDS infection since then labor providers are limited in numbers since most of them are infected with HIV / AIDS. This even affects the quality of education which has been jeopardized with HIV / AIDS.

Genital Herpes

The second disease that is occasioned by viruses and can be considered an STD is the genital herpes. It is caused by herpes simplex viruses type 1 (HSV-1) or type 2 (HSV-2). The complications that come with it are usually mild and can be quite pronounced in some occasions. The complications involve appearance of a blister or two around the genitals or the rectum which break into ulcers and dry out after two to four weeks. Another outbreak can appear after weeks or months. There may also occur a bout of flu, fever and swollen glands. For pregnant mothers, genital herpes pose a potential fatal infection on babies (CDC, 2010).

There are two types of genital Herpes, Type 1 that is characterized by sore on or near the mouth and Type 2 which normally causes sores on the genitals. Once a person has been infected, there is no known cure for this Herpes hence one becomes a carrier for life, only suppressing the effects that it has on him.

Some of the more outstanding symptoms are blisters that are small and fluid filled around the genital area (vaginal lips, vagina, cervix, head/shaft/foreskin of the penis, scrotum, buttocks, anus or thighs). These small blisters are noted to burst leaving sores that are often quite painful. There is also the itchy feeling around the anal area and in the genital areas. The patient can also have backaches, flu-like conditions, swollen glands or fever as well as headaches. In some instances there can be tingling sensation around the anal area and the genitals even before the outbreak of Herpes, since it can be spread to other people even before the host shows any symptoms.

Upon outbreak, the first bout is the worst and takes 2-3 weeks before the patient is healed properly. The subsequent bouts are milder with fewer sores that heal faster than the first ones and the pain is less as well.

Herpes can be spread through various means like kissing mouth to mouth, engaging in sexual intercourse without protection and even the oral sex encounters. There is no absolute assurance of condoms protecting the potential victim though from infection by the virus since the virus could be on any other parts of the genitals that are not protected by the condom.

The diagnosis for Herpes is carried out at the local clinics through examination of the genitals, a laboratory test of fluid from the sores done within 48 hours of the appearance of the sores. For women, there can be an internal pelvic examination.

The available treatment for Herpes is only targeted at helping the sores dry up faster, reduce the number of outbreaks that one suffers and reduce the possibility of one host transmitting it to another person during and between outbreaks.

Syphilis

This is another very sensitive STD that has been in the medical fraternity and the eradiation has proved elusive from time immemorial. This is a bacterial STD caused by Treponema palladium (AVERT, 2011).

The symptoms of syphilis are the same in both men and women. These symptoms can be very mild hence hard to make them out form other forms of STDs. The symptoms associated with STDs can take up to three months to be visible after the day of infection. This STD is a slow and progressive disease with various stages of development with the peimary and secondary stages being very infectious.

The Primary stage is characterized by one or more painless ulcers that will appear at the point where the bacteria entered the body. With will be approximately 21 days after the sexual contact with an infected person. These ulcers may be very difficult to notice and yet they are highly infectious. The most common location of these ulcers are on the vulva or on the cervix in women, for men it is common on the penis and could be around the anus and the mouth an instance that can be for both sexes. If not treated, these ulcers can go for a period of two to six weeks before they heal on their own.

If not discovered and treated at stage one, then the infection will progress to stage two or the secondary stage. This is a stage that sets in three to six weeks after the appearance of the ulcers. The most characterizing symptoms at this stage are flu-like illness, loss of appetite, feeling of tiredness as well as swollen glands that can last for weeks or months. There will also appear a not itchy rash that will cover the whole body or will appear in patches on various parts of the body. For women, there will be some flat, wart-like growths that will be noticed on the vulva and around the anus for both sexes. There will be white patches on the roof of the mouth and on the tongue and the person will also experience patchy hair loss.

This is the stage where syphilis is most infectious and can easily be transmitted to a partner if there is sexual contact. These symptoms will however not last as those of primary stage and will clear off within a few weeks but if the disease is not treated, it may recur for years. It is worth noting that treatment at any of these initial two stages will easily clear off the infection.

If the infection is not treated, it will progress to the latent stage where the patient will not experience any symptoms anymore as it was in the earlier two stages but their infections can still be detected through blood tests.

When the disease is not detected at the latent stage and handled, it will then progress to tertiary stage which is also referred to as the symptomatic late syphilis. This can develop after a long period of time, as long as ten years down the line and often comes now with very serious symptoms that may be hard to control. At this stage, syphilis can affect the heart and even in some instances the nervous system. Even at this stage, the treatment administered can still be effective, however the damages it shall have caused to the nervous system could be irreversible.

Syphilis can be transmitted through coming into contact with syphilis sores while having vaginal, oral or anal sex with an infected person. Syphilis can also be passed from the mother to the unborn baby, but cannot be transmitted through sharing toilets, bath, towels or eating utensils.

Syphilis can be treated in most of the public health care facilities where the samples from the sores, blood samples are taken to the lab and the physical examination of the genital areas can be done as well as internal examination for women.

Typically, syphilis is treated through administration of two-week course of intramuscular penicillin injections or even antibiotic capsules or tablets are given. Prevention is not 100% assured through the use of condoms but can help and regular medical checkup is recommended for persons who engage in multiple sex encounters.