When you get under the pillow with your partner, probably not sexually transmitted diseases are the first thing you think of. You probably, though, that the likelihood of being infected is quite small if you are involved in a relationship with a regular partner, but the risk of being infected is anyway! Both men and women can have a sexually transmitted infection. In fact, even if you are not aware of it, the likelihood is high that you have already had a sexually transferable at some point in your life. The most important tool for keeping your sexual health in good order is information. If you can recognize the symptoms of sexually transmitted diseases, it’s a good start, but some infections, such as chlamydia, gonorrhea, herpes simplex, HIV and syphilis will not always have symptoms. You must then test yourself to be absolutely sure that you are not infected, as is your partner as well. Fortunately, you can get treatment for all the most common sexually transmitted infections, and most people can get rid of it completely – without paying a penny as everything is covered by HELFO under the law on infection protection. There are many different types of sexually transmitted diseases with a wide range of severity, but in this article we only write about those that occur most frequently in Norway.
Mycoplasma genitalium
Ureaplasm ureolyticum
HPV virus
chlamydia
gonorrhea
syphilis
Herpes
trichomoniasis
HIV / AIDS
HPV viruses can cause genital warts and precursors to cancer
In Norway, it is recommended that all women between the ages of 12 and 25 take a vaccine against the HPV virus as it prevents cervical cancer. There are over 40 types of HPV virus that can spread through sexual contact, but there are only a few of them that can cause cervical cancer or malignant changes on the penis. Most types of HPV virus have no symptoms and will not harm , and your body is able to remove it on its own, but some of them can cause genital warts. Other types infect the mouth and throat. Others left can cause cancer of the uterus, penis, mouth or throat. HPV infects through vaginal, anal or oral sex but can also be transmitted via skin to skin contact – unfortunately, condoms have no protective effect.
Typical signs and symptoms of chlamydia
Chlamydia is the common sexually transmitted disease we have in Norway, and it is caused by the intracellular bacterium chlamydia trachomatis. It usually spreads through vaginal, anal oral sex, but sometimes it can also infect from mother to child through birth and cause serious eye infection or pneumonia. This disease causes symptoms in the form of clear abnormal discharge from the penis or vagina, or burning / pain during urination or during sexual intercourse. Chlamydia has in most cases a course without symptoms, and in fact only 25 percent of the women and just under half of the men will experience any symptoms or ailments. It is therefore important that all persons in the risk groups test themselves regularly with a chlamydia home test.
Gonore can have an aggressive course with distinctive symptoms
Gonore is also caused by a bacterium transmitted through sexual contact, and often infected with chlamydia. It can make the symptoms difficult to interpret, as the disease image between those states is quite similar. An important principle is therefore to assume that anyone who is infected with gonore is also infected with chlamydia until the opposite is proven. The clinical picture of the two diseases is usually unusual discharge from the penis / vagina or pain / sore when urinating. Most men with gonorrhea will experience symptoms, but less than fifth of women will notice anything about the disease. This is dangerous as gonore can cause serious complications in the form of pelvic inflammation and arthritis, if gonorrhea is not detected by the right diagnostic test and is treated in time. Fortunately, the disease is easy to treat with antibiotics, but unfortunately in recent years there has been a tendency for resistance development in recent years.
Syphilis is called the “big imitator” of symptoms
Syphilis is a difficult disease because it has three different stages, all of which have different symptom sources. The first stage is characterized by a large painless wound on the outer genital organs (chans), which will disappear after a few weeks in advance of the second phase. There are many who will call syphilis for the “big imitator” because the disease can be misinterpreted as many other conditions. An example of this is that the wound can look like a cut, ingrained hair or a harmless pimple. At the second stage, active and latent phase consists of a period of itching and sores in the mouth, vagina and anus, as well as severe fever and reduced well-being. These troubles usually disappear after a few weeks, and then the latent phase of the disease begins where the disease goes into an inactive phase without symptoms. This stage may last for years or the rest of your life, and it is only 15% of all untreated syphilis will develop the last stage of the disease. The third phase is the most serious where you get damage to the internal organs, nerves and central nervous system. The most common treatment for syphilis is antibiotics.
Herpes causes repeated outbreaks of blisters and sores
Both strains of the herpes virus, HSV-1 and HSV-2, can cause genital herpes, but usually HSV-2 is the culprit. The most common symptom of herpes is painful bumps around the penis, vagina and anus. You can also get bumps inside the vagina or rectum, where you can neither see nor feel them. Herpes is very contagious and all you need is skin-to-skin contact, and the condom has little protective effect. You are most contagious when you have bumps, but you do not need them to pass on the virus. Unfortunately, you can never be completely cured of the disease after you have been infected, but it is fortunately possible to take safe medications to keep outbreaks if you are very bothered.
Trichomoniasis is a common parasite in developing countries
Trichomonas vaginalis is a small parasite that both sexes can transfer to each other through sexual contact, but it is the case that women are more often infected than men. Under one third of people infected with the parasite, symptoms include sore throat and itchy genitalia with a clear / white / yellow / green discharge that smells. The parasite is treated with metronidazole, which is a type of antibiotic that is highly effective against parasites. It is also important to be tested again three months after treatment.
HIV and AIDS are characterized by serious complications
HIV is caused by a virus that infects body fluids like blood, semen, vaginal fluids and breast milk. You can get HIV by having unprotected vaginal or anal intercourse with an infected person or by splitting a syringe with someone who is infected. You can not get HIV from saliva or by kissing. Most symptoms of early infection are vague, and it may seem that you have flu with muscular pain, fatigue, fever and reduced feeling of well-being. You can also lose weight or have diarrhea. The only sure way to know if you have HIV is to test yourself with a home test for HIV. HIV may take several years to destroy your immune system, and after a certain point your body will lose the ability to fight infections. There is unfortunately no cure for HIV and AIDS, but medicines can help infected people live long and contentious lives.