Download Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Sexually Transmitted
Diseases
1. VIRUSES
• A) HIV / AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency
syndrome): Caused by a virus that infects
white blood cells.
HIV
Prevalence
• About 40 million people worldwide have become
infected with HIV, and of these, 12 million have died
of AIDS.
• A new HIV infection occurs every 15 seconds, the
majority in heterosexuals.
• Most infected people live in Africa (66%) where it is
believed HIV infections first began, but new infections
are now occurring at the fastest rate in Southeast Asia
and India.
• In the United States, HTV infections are more
prevalent among African Americans and Hispanics.
Everyone who is sexually active or who use IV
drugs are at risk.
Symptoms of an HIV Infection
• It attacks white blood cells to destroy a
person’s immune system.
• During the initial phase, there are no symptoms
and the blood test is negative, yet the person is
highly infectious.
Symptoms of an HIV Infection
• Several months to several years after infection,
symptoms begin with swollen lymph nodes,
severe fatigue, fever with night sweats, and
diarrhea are present.
• If the virus enters the brain there will be loss of
memory, inability to think clearly, loss of
judgment, and/or depression.
HIV
• Persons with AIDS die from opportunistic
diseases, not from the HIV infection itself.
An opportunistic infection is when a bacteria
that frequently lives on our body without
causing disease but will cause disease if given the
opportunity. One opportunity that can present
itself is when the immune system is weakened.
Treatment
• There is no cure for AIDS, but they can be
given therapy that usually consists of two drugs
that prevent mutation of the virus to a resistant
strain. Unfortunately, if the virus is the resistant
strain, there is no drug therapy.
Transmission of HIV
• The largest group of people with AIDS in the
United States is homosexual men, but the largest
population of new cases are intravenous drug
users and heterosexuals.
• Women now account for 20% of all newly
diagnosed cases of AIDS. An infected woman
can pass HIV to her unborn children or to a
newborn through milk.
Transmission of HIV
• Transmission at birth can be prevented if she
takes AZT, and delivers by C section.
• HIV is spread in body fluids, such as blood,
from one person to another. (Blood
transfusions are now tested for the presence
of HIV, so risk of contracting an infection in
this manner is now considered very
unlikely).
1. VIRUSES
• A) HIV / AIDS
• B) Herpes Infections
B) Herpes Infections
• The herpes viruses cause various illnesses:
– Chicken pox
– Mononucleosis (Epstein-Barr)
– Herpes simplex
• This is the only sexually transmitted form.
• Infects mucosal linings such as the mouth and vagina.
– Type 1 causes cold sores and fever blisters
– Type 2 causes genital herpes.
– However, oral sex with someone with a fever blister can
cause genital herpes and oral sex with someone with genital
herpes can cause fever blisters.
Cold Sores and Fever Blisters
• Contracted during childhood from a smooch from a
well-meaning adult with a cold sore.
• The sores heal and break out again during times of
stress throughout the person’s life. The stress can
be from emotional stress, illness, menstruation,
high fever, colds, or exposure to sunlight.
• The sores are infectious for at least three to four days
until the sores begin to heal. Contact with the sores or
any contaminated object can cause the virus to be
transmitted.
Herpes cold sores
Genital Herpes
• Causes genital warts.
• All warts are caused from a virus.
• Warts are harmless, but they can spread, get bigger, and
cause discomfort.
• Genital herpes is a sexually transmitted wart.
• Over one million persons a year become infected, but
not everyone goes in for treatment.
• It is caused from having intercourse with someone who
has genital herpes, or from having oral sex with
someone with a cold sore.
Genital Herpes
Genital Herpes
Transmission and Symptoms
• In some people there are no symptoms, so many
people don’t know they have them.
• They start as a tingling or itching sensation before
blisters appear on the genitals.
• Once the blisters rupture, they leave painful ulcers that
may take as long as three weeks or as little as five days
to heal.
• The blisters may be accompanied by fever, some
burning on urination, swollen lymph nodes in the groin,
and in women, a copious vaginal discharge.
• As with cold sores, the blisters come back from the
same stress situations.
Genital Herpes
• A newborn can become infected by passage
through the birth canal so they have to be
delivered by C-section.
• Genital warts are associated with cancer of the
genitals. Teenagers with multiple sex partners
are very susceptible to genital warts, and more
cases of cancer of the cervix are being seen
among this age group.
Treatment
• There is no cure for genital herpes.
• There are some medicines in the form of pills or ointment that
disrupt the reproduction of the virus and so relieve the initial
symptoms at the first sign of outbreak, but it will always come
back later.
• They can be temporarily removed by surgery, freezing, acid, or
laser. However, as with all warts, there is a high likelihood of
reoccurrence.
• Even after treatment, the virus can be transmitted because the
wart may look gone, but it lingers in the subdermal tissues.
• Therefore, abstinence or use of a condom is necessary.
1. VIRUSES
• A) HIV / AIDS
• B) Herpes Infections
• C) Hepatitis (Types A, B, and C)
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A
• This is a virus you get when you or a food
worker doesn’t wash the hands after going to
the bathroom, and then you eat.
• It CAN also be sexually transmitted through
oral/anal contact, but it is not primarily
considered as a STD.
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis B
• This is the form that is primarily spread by sexual
contact (it is PRIMARILY a sexually
transmitted disease) or sharing needles by drug
users.
• Only about 50% of infected persons have flu-like
symptoms, including fatigue, fever, headache, nausea,
vomiting, muscle aches, and dull pain in the upper right
of the abdomen.
• Jaundice, a yellowish cast to the skin, can also be
present. Some persons have an acute infection that lasts
only three to four weeks.
• Others have a chronic form of the disease that leads to
liver failure and a need for a liver transplant.
Hepatitis B
• Since there is no treatment for an HBV
infection, prevention is imperative by a
vaccine, which is safe and does not have any
major side effects.
• This vaccine is now on the list of recommended
immunizations for children.
Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C
• This is the form you get PRIMARILY from
infected blood. It is very serious and can
lead to chronic hepatitis, liver cancer, and
death. It CAN be transmitted sexually, but it
is not PRIMARILY known as a STD.
STD’s
• 1. VIRUSES
– HIV / AIDS
– Herpes Infections
– Hepatitis (Types A, B, and C)
• 2. BACTERIA
2. BACTERIA
• Bacterial diseases are controlled by preventing
transmission and by antibiotics.
• Abstinence or monogamous relations (always
the same partner) with someone who is free of
an STD will prevent transmission.
• Otherwise, the use of a condom and avoidance
of oral/genital contact is recommended.
STD’s
• 1. VIRUSES
– HIV / AIDS
– Herpes Infections
– Hepatitis (Types A, B, and C)
• 2. BACTERIA
– Chlamydia
A) Chlamydia
• Chlamydia is the leading STD in the United
States.
• There are about 6 million new cases per year.
Five times more women than men go in for
treatment for this because women have more
symptoms and men who are infected don’t
know it.
• Chlamydia is easily treated with antibiotics.
Symptoms
• At first there may be no symptoms, but after 1-3 weeks
there may be a mild burning sensation on urination
and a mucous discharge in vagina.
• Unfortunately a physician mistakenly may diagnose it as
a urinary tract infection and prescribe the wrong type of
antibiotic; until they realize the medicine is not working,
the person is still contagious.
• If the infection spreads to the ovaries, pelvic
inflammatory disease (PID) results.
• This is a very painful condition with no treatment and
no cure. It also causes sterility. The woman has to live
with this severe pain for the rest of her life.
Chlamydia
• If a newborn comes through the birth canal
of a women with Chlamydia, its eyes
become infected and results in blindness.
• This is the leading cause of blindness in
third-world countries.
• That is sad, because all it requires are some eye
drops in the infant right after birth, and it will
prevent this. This STD is easily cured with
tetracycline.
Chlamydia
• The leading cause of blindness in newborns
is from Chlamydia infections in their eyes
after passing through an infected birth
canal.
• Adults can get it in their eyes, too, if they touch
an infected area and rub their eyes.
• Eye infections cause blindness.
Chlamydia
STD’s
• 1. VIRUSES
– HIV / AIDS
– Herpes Infections
– Hepatitis (Types A, B, and C)
• 2. BACTERIA
– Chlamydia
– Gonorrhea
B) Gonorrhea
• Gonorrhea was at an all-time high in 1978, but
it’s going down now.
• Women using birth-control pills or an IUD have
a greater risk because they cause the genital tract
to be more receptive to pathogens.
Symptoms
• Unlike Chlamydia, gonorrhea symptoms are more
obvious in men than in women.
• Men have pain on urination and a milky urethral
discharge three to five days after contact.
• In women, there are usually no symptoms until after it
spreads to the ovaries, again causing PID (a million
women a year get this).
• Since PID scars up the area around the ovaries,
pregnancy can result in an ectopic pregnancies.
Gonorrhea
• Oral/genital contact can cause infection of the
mouth, throat, and the tonsils. Gonorrhea can
spread to internal parts of the body, causing
heart damage or arthritis.
Gonorrhea
Transmission and Treatment
• The chances of getting a gonorrheal infection
are good. Women have 50—60% risk, while
men have a 20% risk of contracting the disease
after even a single exposure to an infected
partner.
• Painful urination usually indicates
gonorrhea.
• Gonorrhea is easily cured using antibiotics.
STD’s
• 1. VIRUSES
– HIV / AIDS
– Herpes Infections
– Hepatitis (Types A, B, and C)
• 2. BACTERIA
– Chlamydia
– Gonorrhea
– Syphilis
C) Syphilis
• Syphilis is caused by a bacterium that has a tail
and can move, so it is particularly nasty.
Syphilis Has Three Stages
• Primary stage: an ulcerated sore with hard
edges appears at the site of infection.
• The ulcer heals itself, but it is just gearing up for
the next stage.
Syphilis: Primary Stage = Ulcer
Syphilis Secondary stage
• The bacteria spread throughout the body and a
skin rash forms all over, although it is not itchy.
• Again, it heals itself, but the worst is on its way.
Syphilis: Secondary Stage = Rash
Syphilis: Tertiary stage = Brain Damage
• This stage lasts until the patient dies.
• It weakens the arteries, causing aneurysms, and
is known for attacking the brain.
• Symptoms include mental impairment,
blindness, and insanity.
• Henry VIII died from syphilis.
STD’s
• 1. VIRUSES
– HIV / AIDS
– Herpes Infections
– Hepatitis (Types A, B, and C)
• 2. BACTERIA
– Chlamydia
– Gonorrhea
– Syphilis
• 3. Other Organisms that cause STD’s
– Trichomonas
– Fungi and Yeast
– Lice
A) Trichomonas
• This is a single cell parasite which is
transmitted sexually and causes severe
itchiness a woman’s vagina.
• Men are usually asymptomatic (no symptoms).
Trichomonas
B) Fungi and Yeast
• These are pathogens from the plant kingdom.
• When a woman takes an antibiotic while
using birth-control pills, it disrupts the
normal balance of bacteria, and allow
normal yeast there to cause an infection.
C) Lice
• Lice are insects that can infect the hair of humans.
• Head lice is well known for infecting the hair of schoolchildren;
lice on the pubic hair are called “crabs”, and are sexually
transmitted and also can be contracted by contact with an
infected person’s clothing or bedding.
• They suck blood from their host and cause severe itching,
particularly at night.
• The pubic hair, underarm hair, and even the eyebrows can be
infected, and it can be self-diagnosed by examination of the hair.
• Protozoa, yeast, worms, and lice are all easily treated with
antibiotics and disinfection of sheets and clothing.
Lice
Prevention of STD’s
• Prevention is still the best way to manage STDs.
• The use of a condom along with a spermicide that
contains nonoxynol-9
• The avoidance of oral/genital contact
• Have a monogamous relationship
• Don’t have sex with someone who has a STDs
• Don’t have sex with an intravenous drug user.