How to Tell if You Have a Sexually Transmitted Disease
By Elizabeth Boskey, Ph.D., About.com Guide to Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs)
Worried you might have a sexually transmitted disease? This is a great place to find out more. Here you can learn what STD symptoms look like and how STD testing works. You'll also learn why screening is an essential part of dealing with STDs -- even though many STDs may have no symptoms, they can still do damage to your health.
- STD Basics
- Bumps, Sores, and Other Disturbing Signs
- Testing, Testing, STDs
- Asymptomatic STDs: The Hidden Epidemic
- Testing Issues
STD Basics
What is a sexually transmitted disease? How do you get an STD, and what puts you at greater risk than the woman next door or the man in the next office? Information is a powerful tool in understanding your health and protecting it.
- The Most Common Sexually Transmitted Diseases That Should Be on Your Radar
- Major Risk Factors For Acquiring a Sexually Transmitted Disease
- How Douching Increases Your Risk of Sexually Transmitted Diseases
- Does Circumcision Reduce The Risk of HIV?
- Why Young Women are at Increased Risk of Cervical Infection
- The Difference Between Sexually Transmitted and Sexually Associated Diseases
- How Infection With Other STDs Puts You At Increased Risk of Getting HIV
- Common Misconceptions About Safer Sex and STDs
Bumps, Sores, and Other Disturbing Signs
What is that mark that has just appeared on your genitals? Is it a pimple or is it a sexually transmitted disease? Sometimes it's hard to tell what's normal and what you need to be concerned about. The symptoms of STDs are incredibly varied, and not everyone with the same infection will have the same signs. Remember though, that although the articles below will provide you with some useful information, the only way you can find out if something is wrong is to go to a health-care provider.
- The Symptoms of Some Common Sexually Transmitted Diseases
- How Long It Takes Before STD Symptoms Appear
- Symptom Checker
- Cold Sores, Canker Sores, & Chancre : Explaining the Difference
Testing, Testing, STDs
There's no way to know you have an STD without getting tested. How do you know when to get tested, and what do you need to be tested for? It varies person by person and disease by disease, but here are some guidelines to get you started.
- STD Testing Overview
- STD Screening Guidelines: When To Get Tested
- Everything You Need to Know About HIV Testing: Including Where To Find A Test
- Universal HIV Testing
- The Anal Pap Test: Who, What, When, & Why
- Planned Parenthood : An Excellent Resource for STD Testing
- Cervical Cancer Screening: Do I Need a Pap Smear or an HPV Test?
Asymptomatic STDs: The Hidden Epidemic
Perhaps you've heard someone say, "I don't need to get tested for STDs. I'd know if I had one." Perhaps that someone was you. Unfortunately, it simply isn't true -- the vast majority of people with sexually transmitted diseases never know they have them until it's too late. What is too late? It varies for different people. Too late could be when you try to have a child and discover that untreated chlamydia has rendered you infertile, or it could simply be hearing that you've passed on a disease to someone you love.
- No Symptoms Doesn't Mean No Worries
- Pelvic Inflammatory Disease and Female Infertility
- The Long Term Side Effects of Untreated Chlamydia
- Contact Tracing: A Method For Finding People with Asymptomatic STDs
Testing Issues
Sometimes test results are difficult to understand. How can one test tell you that you have a disease when another says that you don't? Not all diagnostic tests are perfect. These articles will help you understand your results when they seem not to make any sense at all.
