MOST COMMON STDS

Let’s start by making something clear: as the name implies, sexually transmitted diseases can only be transmitted through sexual intercouse and not through the exchange of clothes, the use of toilets, or swimming pools. The diseases that have reached an important number among teenage population, are:

Syphilis

Its main symptom is the appearance of the primary lesion or chancre. It’s a white, hard, and painless grain-shaped growth in the area where contact has taken place (genitals, or tongue/lips when oral sex has been practiced). It comes out approximately 2 weeks after having contact with the infected person, and disappears spontaneously, so that’s why people don't give it much importance. After a while, it presents life-threatening complications due to the lack of medical attention, generating brain and spinal cord attacks (neurosyphilis), or destroying the main blood vessels. 

Genital Herpes

A disease caused by a virus that’s difficult to cure. It’s manifested by small "vesicles" filled with transparent liquid around the sexual organs and the groin. It’s painful and its crisis is repeated in the years following its acquisition. It reduces life quality for a long time, and it occurs regularly among women over 30. 

Condylomatosis

A painful condition caused by a virus. The treatment is “topical”, which means applying “chemical” medications in the affected areas. It manifests itself with the appearance of small rashes on the skin, which accumulate one on top of the other until they obstruct the vagina’s exit. 

Papillomatosis

A name frequently given to condylomatosis. It’s commonly mistaken for papillitis, an infectious disease that severely swells the vaginal papillae. It can be transmitted through sexual or viral contact.

Pediculosis

Produced by a lice that lives in the pubic hair area, producing an intense and unpleasant itching. Its elimination is simple: just use a product for lice. 

Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

The so-called "twentieth-century evil" has increased in an alarming way. The way it progresses makes it particularly dangerous since its varied and long incubation period allows carriers to transmit it unconsciously.  Although there is still no cure, antiretroviral therapies give a longer and higher quality of life expectancy. 

It’s important to see your gynecologist so that he/she can guide you in the use of birth control methods, and also protect you from these diseases.