78 Little Known Facts About . . .
STIs/STDs
1. An STI (sexually transmitted infection) is a germ (virus, bacteria, parasite) that can cause an
illness inside a person even though the person doesn’t have any symptoms. An STD (sexually
transmitted disease) refers to infections that are causing symptoms or problems.j
2. A Brazilian Web site lets people send their partners e-cards informing them they have an
STD and that they should see a doctor.l
3. STIs/STDs were previously called “venereal diseases” (VDs), a term which derives from
Veneris, or Venus, the Roman goddess of love.a
4. By 2010, at least 35 million children will have lost one or both parents to AIDS.e
5. Child rape is an epidemic in Africa, largely due to the entrenched belief that sex with a virgin
can cure sexually transmitted diseases, such as AIDS.c
6. Direct medical costs associated with STIs/STDs in the United States are estimated at $13
billion per year.d
7. A girl is four times more likely to contract an STI/STD than she is
to become pregnant.d
8. Pre-ejaculate can still transmit infection. Withdrawing before
ejaculation also does not prevent STDs.d
9. Douching (from the Latin ducere, “to lead”) before and after sex
does not protect against STDs/STIs and, in fact, may promote an
Women often suffer more serious
infection after exposure to an STI/STD.d
health complications from
10. Unprotected anal intercourse with a partner whose status for
STIs/STDs than men
k
STIs/STDs is unknown is the highest-risk sexual practice.
11. Genital pimples do not necessarily mean an STD and may simply indicate a case of genital
acne.d
12. Each year there are approximately 333 million new cases of STDs in the world, according to
the CDC.j
13. Women and their children are at much greater risk than men for long-lasting or permanent
consequences of STIs/STDs.j
14. The first hospital for venereal disease was the London Lock Hospital in 1746. Treatment was
not always voluntary.a
15. Over 25 million people globally have died of AIDS since 1981.e
16. The CDC initially called AIDS the “gay cancer” and later renamed it GRID (Gay-Related
Immune Deficiency). In 1982, the disease was renamed AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency
Syndrome).i
17. The estimated number of people living in the U.S. with a viral STD/STI is over 65 million.
One in two sexually active people will contact an STD/STI before the age of 25.j
18. The human papillomavirus (HPV) is currently the fastest growing
STI/STD.j
19. Mutual masturbation is not a guarantee against contracting an STD. Pubic
lice, scabies, bacterial vaginosis cytomegalovirus, herpes simplex, and
human papillomavirus virus (HPV) can all be contracted through mutual
masturbation.d
20. Crabs (pubic lice) are small parasites that feed on human blood. They can
be sexually transmitted even if there is no penetration or bodily fluid
exchanged or even if a condom is worn. They can live 24 hours off a
HPV is the fast growing
human host, making it possible to get crabs from infested bedding or
STI/STD in the United
States
clothes. Animals do not get crabs.i
21. Donovanosis is a very rare sexually transmitted disease. Small, painless
nodules appear after 10-40 days after exposure and, if left untreated, can destroy penile
tissue.i
22. The origins of STIs/STDs are obscure. Some researchers have argued that microbes adapted
themselves to affect the human genital area or even jumped from animals to humans.a
23. Curable STIs/STDs are usually bacterial and include chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and
trichomoniasis. Viral STIs/STDs cannot be cured and include HPV (though the body can
clear this disease), Herpes, Hepatitis B, and HIV.d
24. While some STIs/STDs—such as chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis—are curable, if left
untreated, they can cause death, infertility, chronic pain, serious birth defects, and
miscarriages.d
Could It Be an STI/STD?
Bacterial STIs/STDs
STD
Symptoms/Signs
Complications
Treatment
Transmission
Chlamydia
Women: Most women (75%) show no
signs. Some may have slight vaginal
discharge, pain during urination and sex,
and/or frequent urination, low abdominal
pain, low back pain, nausea, fever, bleeding
between menstrual periods
Women: infertility, infected
cervix, pelvic pain, PID,
ectopic pregnancy, arthritis
Men: infertility, arthritis,
eye infections, urinary
infections
Curable with
antibiotics
Body Fluid
Infects 4 million per year in
the U.S.
Surgery may be
needed if PID has
developed.
Men: 50% of men do not show symptoms.
Some may experience discharge, itchy
feeling in penis, mild urination pain, or
infection of anus or throat
Gonorrhea
Infects 718,000 per year in
the U.S.
Women: Most women show no signs, some
may have thick, cloudy, or bloody vaginal
discharge, urination pain, frequent
urination
Women: sterility, PID
Men: sterility, swollen
testes
Curable with
antibiotics, though
some strains are
resistant
Men: thick yellow-green discharge from the
penis, penis pain, pain on urinating
Men and Women: heart,
brain, and liver infections,
arthritis
Surgery may be
needed if PID
developed
Skin, bone, heart, brain
disease
Curable with
antibiotics
Body Fluid
Men and women: rectum may become
infected with pain, bleeding, and discharge.
Throat may be sore
Syphilis
Infects 31,000 per year in
the U.S.
Stage 1: painless sores that can last 3-6
weeks and disappear, swollen glands, and
skin rashes
Stage 2: rashes, new sores, flu-like
symptoms, swollen glands, muscle pain
Stage 3: severe and irreversible damage to
Dementia, blindness,
paralysis
Lung and liver tumors,
death
Skin-to-skin contact
body
Viral STIs/STDs
STD
Symptoms/Signs
Complications
Treatment
Transmission
Human Papilloma Virus
(HPV, genital warts)
Nearly 98% of HPV strains are
asymptomatic. A few strains cause visible
warts that occur on the vagina, penis,
urethra, cervix, throat, or anus
Cancer of the cervix, vulva,
penis, vagina, throat, or
anus. Warts may reappear
throughout life
No cure
Skin-to-skin contact
Women: stinging, itching blisters and sores
in genitals, fever, headache, painful
urination, vaginal discharge
Can spread even without
apparent sores
Infects 6.2 million per year
in the U.S.
Genital Herpes (HSV)
Infects 1.6 million per year
in the U.S.
Men: Stinging, itching blisters or sores on
penis, fever, headaches, painful urination
Most infections are
cleared by the body
after 1-2 years
No cure
Skin-to-skin
No cure
Bodily fluids
Outbreaks occur throughout
life, especially when under
stress
50% unaware they are
infected
HIV/AIDS
Infects 40,000 per year in
the U.S.
Maybe symptom-less for 10 years, some
may feel sick two to six weeks after
infection
HIV destroys the immune
system and leads to AIDS.
The result is death.
25. Over 180 million cases of trichomoniasis occur worldwide per year. In the United States, it is
estimated that 7.4 million new cases of trichomoniasis occur each year.d
26. Though scientists first recognized HIV/AIDS as a disease in 1981, it was introduced into
North America by a Haitian immigrant during the late 1960s.b
27. Many sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, can be
transmitted through oral sex.i
28. Chlyamida is Greek for “cloak” because early researchers
believed the disease “cloaked” the nucleus of an infect
cell.a Chlamydia is found only in human cells, though it shares a
common ancestor with plants and exhibits unusual plant-like
Oral sex can spread many common
traits.f
STIs/STDs, including HIV
29. Nearly 700,000 people in the United States are infected with
gonorrhea per year. Gonorrhea is also called “the clap,” from the Middle
English clapper meaning a rabbit burrow, which was slang for a place of prostitution.a
30. HIV/AIDS originated in primates in Sub-Sahara Africa and transferred to humans during the
late nineteenth or early twentieth century, probably when a bushmeat hunter was bitten or cut
by an infected animal.i
31. The CDC estimates that 20 million Americans are currently infected with the genital human
papillomavirus (HPV), a virus that causes most cases of cervical cancer and genital warts.d
32. Nearly 6.2 million Americans get a new HPV infection each year. Most HPV infections
cause no clinical problems and resolve on their own without treatment (91% of new
infections clear up within two years).d
33. Some strains of HPV can lead to a persistent infection that can progress to cervical cancer if
left untreated. Every year, about 12,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the
United States and nearly 4,000 die. However, cervical cancer is largely preventable with
effective screening.d
34. There is now a vaccine that prevents some types of HPV. The vaccine is given in three shots
over six months and is recommended for females aged 13-26 who have not been diagnosed
with HPV. Most major insurances cover the cost, which is currently $125 per shot.d
35. Roughly 40,000 new HIV infections in the United States occur each year.e
36. Between 1,500 and 1,700 new cases of new HIV/AIDs infections occur daily in South
Africa.e
37. As of 2007, an estimated 1 to 1.2 million Americans were living with HIV/AIDS, with 21%
undiagnosed.e
38. The rate of chlamydia among African-American men is more than 11 times that of white
men. Additionally, African-Americans remain the group most heavily affected by gonorrhea.
In 2004, the gonorrhea rate among blacks was 19 times the rate among whites.d
39. Although African-Americans make up only 13% of the U.S. population, they accounted for
one half of the estimated new HIV/AIDS diagnoses in 2004.e
40. Although teenagers and young adults represent only 25% of the
sexually active population, 15- to 24-year-olds account for nearly
half of all STIs/STDs diagnoses each year. Every day in America,
12,000 teenagers contract a sexually transmitted disease.d
41. With a single chlamydia infection, there is a 25% chance of
sterility for women. With a second infection, there is a 50%
chance. And a third infection almost guarantees sterility, due to
12,000 teenagers contract an STD
each day in U.S. alone
PID (pelvic inflammatory disease).d
42. Infertility as a result of PID accounts for 50-80% of the infertility
in Africa.i
43. Black women in 2002 accounted for 67% of the U.S. AIDS cases among women.i
44. The single biggest driver of heterosexual spread of AIDS to black women is the incarceration
of black men.i
45. Despite more discussions about STDs and safer sex after the discovery of HIV, the number of
people infected with all STDs continues to grow.i
46. Women who have sex with other women can still become infected with STDs and need to
have yearly Pap smears as a screening test for cervical cancer.d
47. Each year, 40,000 Americans are infected with the most serious STD, HIV/AIDS.e
48. While most STDs can be accurately tested soon after exposure, HIV should be tested for
most accurate results about six months after possible exposure.k
49. STIs/STDs cannot be acquired in a swimming or public bathroom
(unless you have sex in the pool or on the toilet). Most STIs/STDs
are spread only through direct genital contact and begin to die
immediately after they leave the infected person.k
50. Chancroid (“soft chancre”) is highly contagious but usually
curable STI/STD. Unlike a syphilis chancre that is hard or
Sexually transmitted diseases
rubbery, a chancroid is soft to the touch. Ulcers are painful in
cannot live long enough on a toilet
seat to be transmittable
men, but women may not be aware of them. Rare in the Western
i
world, the disease can be easily confused with syphilis or herpes.
51. Nearly half of U.S. youths and adolescents are unaware of their HIV infection, and less than
a quarter are tested for the virus.h
52. The only STD that affects more men than women is syphilis.d
53. The rate of chlamydia among black Americans was over eight times higher than that of
whites in 2007. It was also substantially higher in American Indians/Alaska Natives and
Hispanics than in whites.d
54. Bathhouses, which were popular in the 1970s—and offered gay men a variety of partners and
sex, with promiscuity the norm—became breeding grounds for HIV.a
55. Digital-anal sex, in which one partner uses a finger to stimulate the other’s anus, can be a
means of transmitting HIV.i
56. The rate at which HIV becomes AIDS varies greatly among individuals. Some who contract
HIV develop AIDS very soon after; in others, full-blown AIDS won’t develop for 10 or more
years.k
57. African-American children represent two thirds (65%) of all reported cases of pediatric
AIDS.e
58. People with an STD are more likely to become infected with HIV because they usually have
genital ulcerations which provide an easy route for HIV to enter the blood stream.k
59. One in four teen girls has a sexual disease, with HPV (human
papillomavirus) by far being the most common.d
60. HPV is believed to cause oral cancer in men at the same rate
as tobacco and alchohol.d
61. Some STDs (syphilis) can cross the placenta and infect a baby
while in the uterus. Other STDs (gonorrhea, genital herpes,
At least 1 in 4 teenage girls has at
chlamydia, hepatitis B) can be transmitted from mother to baby
least one STI/STD
during delivery through the birth canal. HIV can cross the
placenta during pregnancy, infect the baby during the birth and, unlike most STDs, can also
infect the baby through breastfeeding.j
62. A pregnant woman with STDs may have an early onset of labor, premature rupture of
membranes, uterine infections after delivery, or a still birth. The baby may suffer from low
birth weight, eye infection (conjunctivitis), pneumonia, neonatal sepsis (blood infection),
neurological damage, blindness, and liver disease.j
63. The Pap test is named after the physician George Papanicolaou, who introduced this
technique in 1949.i
64. Researchers now can identify the DNA of many HPV strains, which can be used to confirm
the presence of HPV types that are linked to cervical disease.g
65. Common symptoms of STDs include burning or pain while urinating; any discharge from the
opening of the penis; a change in a woman’s normal vaginal discharge or smell; sores,
blisters, rashes, bums, swellings, or growths around the penis, vagina, or rectum; itching,
burning, or pain around the penis, vagina, or anus; pain during sex; and pain in the lower
abdomen.k
66. One out of 20 people will become infected with hepatitis B (HBV) during their life. HBV is
linked to chronic liver disease and liver cancer.k
67. Hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and some types of HPV are the only vaccine-preventable STDs.k
68. Though one in five Americans has genital herpes, nearly 90% are unaware they have it. Some
estimates suggest that by 2025 up to 40% of all men and half of all women could be
infected.k
69. A condom merely reduces—but does not eliminate—the risk of
an STD.k
70. In the beginning of the twentieth century, up to a third of all
patients in mental asylums were thought to be suffering from
tertiary syphilis.i
71. Second to African-American women, Native American women
The correct use of a condom does
are diagnosed with STIs/STDS at a higher rate than all other
not eliminate the risk of contracting
an STI/STD
racial/ethnic groups.d
72. Gonorrhea got its name in the year A.D. 131 from Galen, one of
the greatest Greek physicians. Its name literally means “flow of seed” because Galen
mistakenly thought the penile discharge was “seed” flowing out against its will.i
73. Al Capone had syphilis and it may have driven him mad. Other notable people who most
likely suffered from syphilis include Hernando Cortéz, Adolph Hitler, Benito Mussolini,
Friedrich Nietzsche, Edourd Manet, Napoleon and, possibly, Franz Schubert.i
74. Syphilis is named after a mythological Greek shepherd named Syphilus who was cursed with
a horrible disease as a punishment for insulting the god Apollo.i
75. Doctors in the late 1400s and early 1500s were so afraid of syphilis they would not write
down its name. Instead they used the Greek letter Sigma as its symbol.a
76. Italians and Germans call syphilis the “French Disease,” and the French call it “the Spanish
Disease.”a
77. Historians believe syphilis originated in the New World among the Native Americans in the
Caribbean, and that Christopher Columbus may have been responsible for spreading syphilis
to Europe.a
78. During the first outbreak of syphilis in Europe, in the late fifteenth century, nearly 10 million
Europeans died.a
-- Posted September 7, 2009
References
a
Allen, Peter Lewis. 2000. The Wages of Sin: Sex and Disease, Past and Present. Chicago, IL: The University of
Chicago Press.
b
Bowdler, Neil. “Key HIV Strain ‘Came for Haiti.’” BBCNews.com. October 30, 2007. Accessed: August 24, 2009.
c
“Child Rape Survivor Saves ‘Virgin Myth’ Victims.” CNN.com. June 5, 2009. Accessed: August 24, 2009.
d
Egendorf, Laura, ed. 2007. Sexually Transmitted Diseases. New York, NY: Thompson Gale.
e
“HIV: Basic Statistics.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. January 26, 2009. Accessed: August 24, 2009.
f
McCoy, Andrea J., et al. “1,1-Diaminopimelate Aminotransferase, A Trans-Kingdom Enzyme Shared by
Chlamydia and Plants for Synthesis of Diaminopimelate/Lysine.”Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
of the United States of America. November 8, 2006. Accessed: August 25, 2009.
g
McNeil, Donald. “DNA Test Outperforms Pap Smear.” TheNewYorkTimes.com. April 2009. Accessed: August
23, 2009.
h
“One in Two HIV-Positive Youth Unaware of Infection.” MSNBC.com. June 25, 2009. Accessed: August 24,
2009.
i
Shoquist, Jennifer, M.D., and Diane Stafford. 2004. The Encyclopedia of Sexually Transmitted Diseases. New
York, NY: Facts on File, Inc.
j
“STDs and Pregnancy—CDC Fact Sheet.” Center for Disease Control. January 4, 2008. Accessed: August 23,
2009.
k
Sutton, Amy L., ed. Sexually Transmitted Diseases Sourcebook. Detroit, MI: Omnigraphics.
l
“You’ve Got Mail—And Possibly an STD: Brazil Creates E-cards to Inform Partners of Infection.”
LosAngelesTimes.com. August 21, 2009. Accessed: August 23, 2009.