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• Chlamydia
• Caused By:
• • Bacteria found in semen and vaginal fluids
• • If you do have Chlamydia and don’t get it treated it can spread to other organs and may reduce your fertility. In women you may get Pelvic Inflammatory Disease. Men may get a painful infection of the testicles.
• Signs & Symptoms
• • Most people have NO symptoms – you can only be certain if you have a test.
• Women: • Pain when you wee • Lower abdominal pain • Unusual vaginal discharge
• Men: • White/Cloudy discharge from penis.
• Tests & Treatment
• Tested By: • Urine sample - COAST have trained all the Choices’ staff so they can do this test in any Choices’.
• • Swabs can be taken from the vagina in women, or from the entrance of the urethra (tube that you wee from) in men.
• Treated with: • Antibiotics • If you don’t get treated it might make you (men & women) infertile.
• Gonorrhoea
• Caused By:
• • Bacterial infection passed on during sex.
• • If you do have Gonorrhoea and don’t get it treated it can spread to other organs and may reduce your fertility. In women you may get Pelvic Inflammatory Disease or blocked fallopian tubes. Men may get inflamed testicles or an inflamed prostate.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • About 10%of women and 50% of men have no symptoms.
• Women • Unusual vaginal discharge – thin, watery, yellow or green • Pain when you wee • Lower abdominal pain or tenderness.
• Men • White, yellow or green discharge from tip of your penis • Pain when you wee • Painful or tender testicles.
• Tests & Treatment:
• Tested By • Swabs • Urine Test.
• Treatment • Single dose of antibiotics - these may affect the effectiveness of the Oral Contraceptive Pill.
• Genital Herpes
• Caused By:
• • Virus passed from skin to skin contact • If you have it once you may get another episode but it is unlikely.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • Most people have NO symptoms – you can only be certain if you have a test • Small fluid filled blisters anywhere around your genitals or anus • Blisters may burst and turn into painful red sores • Pain when you wee.
• Tests & Treatment:
• Tested By: • Doctors & nurses can usually tell by looking, but will also take a swab.
• Treated With: • Antiviral tablets • Herpes episodes can clear up but you may still risk passing it on to someone else even when you have no symptoms – using a condom reduces the risk of this kind of transmission.
• Genital Warts
• Caused By:
• • Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) is passed on by sexual contact and by skin to skin contact with someone who has the virus • Some types of this virus have been linked to changes in cervical cells which can cause cancer eventually – cervical smear tests pick up these changes.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • Most people have NO symptoms – you can only be certain if you have a test • Small bumps or growths anywhere around the genitals • They can be very small or quite large like cauliflower lumps • Not painful but may be itchy.
• Tests & Treatment:
• Tested By: • Doctors & nurses can usually tell by looking, but will also take a swab.
• Treatment: • Aim is to remove the visible warts using creams or liquids • Warts episodes can clear up but you may still risk passing it on to someone else even when you have no symptoms – using a condom reduces the risk of this kind of transmission.
• Thrush
• Caused By:
• • Thrush is not a sexually transmitted infection but can sometimes be passed from one person to another • Yeast (a fungus) called Candida Albicans lives on the skin, in the mouth, gut and vagina. • Usually it’s kept under control but when it gets out of control it’s called Thrush.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • Some people have NO symptoms.
• Women: • Itching, soreness, redness around the vagina • Thick white discharge, smells yeasty • Pain when you wee or have sex.
• Men • Irritation, burning, or itching under the foreskin or on the tip of the penis • Thick discharge under the foreskin.
• Tests & Treatment:
• • Taking a swab from the genital area.
• Treated By: • Antifungal cream • Pessaries (almond shaped tablet put high in a woman’s vagina) • Pills • Or a combination of all three • You can buy some antifungal treatments in the chemist.
• Bacterial Vaginosis (BV)
• Caused By:
• • One in three women will get this at some time but it’s not a sexually transmitted infection • It’s probably caused by an acid imbalance in the a vagina • Men can’t get BV.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • Some women have NO symptoms • May notice change in usual vaginal discharge and a fishy smell • Fishy smell may be most noticeable after sex.
• Tests & Treatment:
• Tested By: • Taking a swab from the genital area • May ask you for a urine test.
• Treated By: • Antibiotic tablets • Or a cream to use in the vagina.
• Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
• Caused By:
• • Virus that makes you more susceptible to other illnesses • Passed on by having unprotected sex or sharing needles with someone who has the virus • A woman with HIV can pass the virus to her baby before or during birth or by breastfeeding • People are diagnosed with AIDS (acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) when they have HIV and get certain serious illnesses.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • There are no specific symptoms • Some people may get a flu-like illness after being infected • Once infected you are infected for the rest of your life.
• Tests & Treatment:
• Tested by: • A Blood Test which looks for antibodies (what your body makes in an immune response) to HIV.
• Treatment: • There is no cure and no vaccination • There are drugs which help to manage the virus and other drugs to prevent or treat many of the illnesses HIV positive people are prone to.
• Syphilis
• Caused By:
• • Bacterial infection passed on during sex or skin to skin contact with someone who has syphilis sores • Pregnant women can pass it on to their unborn baby • Has three stages – if you are not treated until in the 3rd stage the infection can still be cured but there may have been permanent organ damage.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • Women and men have the same symptoms • Stage 1 - Painless sores at the point where you were infected. These are very infectious • Stage 2 – Painless rash all over the body, warty looking growths, flu-like illness, white patches on tongue or mouth • Stage 3 – happens when the infection remains untreated. May have no further symptoms. After many years can affect the heart, brain, eyes and other organs and eventually be fatal.
• Tests & Treatment:
• Tested By • Blood Test • Sometimes a urine test as well • Swab to collect any fluid from sores.
• Treatment • Stage 1 & 2 are simply & effectively treated by antibiotics.
• Hepatitis B
• Caused By:
• • Very infectious virus in your blood that can be passed on through unprotected sex, sharing needles, unclean medical equipment (in developing countries) and from a pregnant woman to her baby.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • There are no specific symptoms • Some people may get a flu-like illness or nausea, diarrhoea etc after being infected • Illness can be acute (you get better quickly) or chronic (lasts for 6 months or more, possibly for the rest of your life) • Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver so if you have a chronic episode you can end up with long term liver damage (cirrhosis).
• Tests & Treatment:
• • Protect yourself with a vaccine – it takes three doses over 6 months before you will be protected and then you may need a booster 5 years later • If you have an acute episode you may not need any treatment • If the episode is chronic you will need antiviral medication.
• Pubic Lice
• Caused By:
• • Tiny parasitic insects that live in coarse body hair e.g. pubic hair • Crawl between hairs and are passed in this way from one person to another by close body or sexual contact • Also known as crabs as this is what the insects look like under a microscope • They are not the same as head lice.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • There may not be any symptoms • Itching in the affected area • Black powdery droppings in your underwear • Brownish dots attached to your hair (these are the eggs but they are hard to spot).
• Tests & Treatment:
• • Doctors & nurses can usually tell by looking, but may use a magnifying glass • A cream, lotion or shampoo will effectively treat this • You may need to repeat the treatment in 3-7 days time • You will need to wash your clothing, bedding and towels in a hot wash (more than 50°C) to kill any lice on them • You can buy the treatment from a pharmacy.
• Scabies
• Caused By:
• • Tiny (smaller than a pinhead) parasitic mites that burrow under the skin and lay eggs • Passed from one person to another by close body or sexual contact • They can live for 72 hours off the body • Found in the genital area, buttocks, and at joints like wrists, elbows, ankles, and between fingers.
• Signs & Symptoms:
• • There may not be any symptoms and it usually takes 6 weeks after you have caught scabies for any symptoms to appear • Itching in the affected area, that is worse at night • Rash or red spots (can look a little like eczema) • Inflammation caused by scratching.
• Tests & Treatment:
• • Doctors & nurses can usually tell by looking, but may take a skin flake to look at under the microscope • A cream or lotion will effectively treat this but it needs to be left on for 12 hours when you apply it • You may need to repeat the treatment in 3-7 days time • You will need to wash your clothing, bedding and towels in a hot wash (more than 50°C) to kill any lice on them • You can buy the treatment from a pharmacy.