Viral STDs are not curable and will stay with you the rest of your life. There are medications that help suppress the symptoms but do not cure the disease. A few viral STDs are: Genital Herpes, Human Papillomavirus (HPV), and HIV/AIDS.

Bacterial STDs are curable but the damage the disease does to your body before treatment is irreversible. They are usually treated with antibiotics. A few bacterial STDs are: Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Trichomoniasis, and Syphillis.

ABSTINENCE IS THE ONLY 100% EFFECTIVE WAY TO PREVENT STDs
If you think you might have contracted a STD and would like some additional information, please contact the National Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) Hotline at 1-800-227-8922.

Remember...

• You can NOT tell if someone has an STD by looking at them.
• Every 8 seconds another teen gets an STD
• Condoms are NOT “safe sex”!!
• 1 in 4 sexually active teens contract a STD each year
• 4 million teens each year contract an STD

Human Papillomavirus (HPV)

With 5.5 million new cases diagnosed each year, this is the fastest growing STD in the U.S.

Transmission:
Vaginal and anal sex; Contact with infected skin; Mother to child.

Where is it found?:
vagina, cervix, urethra, anus, scrotum, mouth, throat, and all genital areas.

Symptoms:
Cauliflower like warts or painful blisters.
Also responsible for cervical cancer in women, which kills 4,100 women a year in the U.S.

Treatment:
NO CURE (viral)—Warts can be burned or cut off, but can return at any time.

Prevention:
Abstinence is the only 100% protection. No evidence that condom use reduces the risk of becoming infected with HPV.

Teens Infected:
28 – 46% of women under the age of 25

Genital Herpes
1 in 5 Americans over the age of 12 have genital herpes—that’s 45 million cases in the U.S.

Transmission:
Oral, anal, and vaginal sex; Contact with infected skin; Mother to child.
Can be transmitted even when blisters are not present.

Where is it found?:
Vagina, cervix, urethra, anus, mouth, throat, and all genital areas.

Symptoms:
Blisters and ulcers on the genitals that are painful and recurrent
Burning, itching sensation before outbreak
Painful, red, grape-like clusters of fluid filled blisters.

Treatment:
NO CURE (viral)—Medication can help reduce breakouts.

Prevention:
Abstinence is the only 100% protection. Condom use showed some decreased risk, but risk reduction was less than 50%.

Teens Infected:
4.5 – 8.8% of teens age 12 – 19 (depends on race and ethnicity).

Human Immuno-Deficiency Virus (HIV)
The incubation period of AIDS is 8 to 10 years; therefore most of the people are contracting the disease as teenagers

Transmission:
Oral, anal, and vaginal sex; IV drug use; Mother to child.

Where is it found?:
Blood, semen, vaginal fluid, and breast milk

Symptoms:
Can go for many years without any indications of the disease
Destroys immune system making you susceptible to common illnesses
Once a person’s T-cell count falls below 500, a person is considered to have full blown AIDS

Treatment:
NO CURE (viral)—Symptom control with AIDS medicines (antiretroviral drugs)—Medicine is extremely expensive.

Prevention:
Abstinence is the only 100% protection. Condom use decreases the risk by 85%.

Teens Infected:
At the end of 2002, about 36,000 people age 13 – 24.

The fastest growing segment of the population to contract HIV/AIDS is individuals younger than 24 years of age.

The incubation period of AIDS is 8 to 10 years; therefore most of the people are contracting the disease as teenagers

Chlamydia

Transmission:
Oral, anal, and vaginal sex; Mother to child.

Where is it found?:
Vagina, cervix, urethra, throat, and anus.

Symptoms:
Urethral / vaginal irritation and/or pain in testicles
Chronic low stomach pain
PID (pelvic inflammatory disease), which can cause premature birth, infant pneumonia, and infertility.

Treatment:
Cured with antibiotics (bacterial)—Antibiotics do not restore damage that occurred before treatment (such as PID).

Prevention:
Abstinence is the only 100% protection. Condom use showed some decreased risk, but risk reduction was less than 50%.

Teens Infected:
3 –14% of women age 15 –24 who visited family planning clinics.
4 million new cases are diagnosed each year.

Gonorrhea (The Clap)

Transmission:
Oral, anal, and vaginal sex; Mother to child.

Where is it found?:
Vagina, cervix, urethra, throat, and anus.

Symptoms:
Discharge from penis, vagina, or rectum
Redness on the cervix
Swollen glands in the groin or penis area
Burning and/or itching during urination
Chronic low stomach pain--PID (pelvic inflammatory disease), which can cause premature birth, infant pneumonia, and infertility.

Treatment:
Cured with antibiotics (bacterial)—Antibiotics do not restore damage that occurred before treatment (such as PID).
Doctors will treat for Chlamydia at the same time because it is likely a person has both STDs.

Prevention:
Abstinence is the only 100% protection. Condom use showed some decreased risk, but risk reduction was less than 50%.

Teens Infected:
2.8% of women age 15- 24 who visited family planning clinics (based on reporting states).

Trichomoniasis

Transmission:
Oral, anal, and vaginal sex

Where is it found?:
The vagina is the most common site of infection in women, and the urethra (urine canal) is the most common site of infection in men.

Symptoms:
Urethral/ vaginal discharge.
Discomfort during intercourse and/or burning after urination. Trichomoniasis increases the likelihood of giving or receiving the HIV/AIDS virus.

Treatment:Cured with antibiotics (bacterial)—Antibiotics do not restore damage that occurred before treatment.

Prevention:Abstinence is the only 100% protection.

Teens Infected:There are at least 7.4 million new cases of Trichomoniasis diagnosed each year.

Syphillis

Transmission:
Oral, anal, and vaginal sex; Contact with sores; Mother to child.

Where is it found?:
Vagina, cervix, urethra, anus, mouth, throat, and all genital areas.

Symptoms:
Flat, scaly, round, bumpy or crater-like rashes anywhere on the body.
Within 6 months of infection an individual might experience flu-like symptoms (fever, fatigue, and sore throat)
Painless sores on genitals, rectum, or mouth

Treatment:
Cured with antibiotics (bacterial)—Antibiotics do not restore damage that occurred before treatment.

Prevention:
Abstinence is the only 100% protection. Condom use showed some decreased risk, but risk reduction was less than 50%.

Teens Infected:
In 2002, there were about 350 cases of primary and secondary syphilis in 15 – 19 yr olds.