STD Symptom Chart

Disease	Symptoms	Testing/Treatment	Comments
Chlamydia (top)	Chlamydia is a very dangerous STD. Symptoms often unnoticeable. 75% of infected women and 50% of men have no symptoms at all. If symptoms are present they can be: discharge from the penis or vagina and burning sensation when urinating. Women may experience abominable pain or pain during intercourse. There can be bleeding between menstrual cycles. Men may experience itching around the penis or pain and swelling testicles. It can cause chronic pain, infertility, problems during pregnancy - Causes PID	There are two kinds of test for chlamydia. One involves collecting a small amount of fluid from an infected site (cervix or penis) with a cotton swab. These test are universally available. New tests, which use only urine samples, will be available soon and will make testing much easier and less painful. Treatment: Antibiotics. Usually a single does of axithromycin or a week of doxycycline.	Over 4 million new cases each year. Curable
Gonorrhea (top)	Gonorrhea is one of the most frequently reported STD. It can cause serious problems, especially for women, if not treated early. 40% of its victims contract PID if not treated, and it can cause sterility. Symptoms are similar to Chlamydia.	It is possible to have gonorrhea without symptoms. If symptoms do appear, they may include discharge from the penis or vagina, need to urinate often, burning pain when urinating, and in women, bleeding between monthly periods. About half of women with gonorrhea have no symptoms. Treatment: Antibiotics. Common treatments include the use of drugs such as: ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, cefixime, ceftriaxone, and axithromycin. Ineffective or incomplete treatment can result in serious medical issues. Can cause chronic pain, infertility, ectopic pregnancy, and arthritis. Causes PID	1.3 million new cases per year - some strains are resistant to treatment.
Genital Human Papillomavirus HPV (top)	*tHERE aRE usually No visible signs of symptoms. HPV infections cause abnormal cell growth on the female cervix. Visible signs of the disease include condylomata, which range from soft, pink, cauliflower-like warts to hard, smooth, yellow-gray warts. In women, they may develop inside the vagina, where they are hard to detect. They may appear on the lips of the vagina or around the anus. In men, they usually appear on the penis, but are sometime found on the scrotum (the sac that holds the testicles) or around the anus. If there are visible signs, you will notice them within 3 weeks to 6 months after having sex with someone who is infected. This time period makes it difficult to trace the infection as it is passed from partner to partner. Warts on the genital - Linked to cervical cancer. 33% of all women have this virus. Can cause cervical or penile cancer and genital pain.	Your healthcare provider can check closely to detect warts or other abnormal tissue. For women, the PAP smear is designed to detect pre-cancerous changes in the cervix and may show changes caused by HPV. Generally, a symptomatic men with HPV are hard to diagnose and usually aren't treated. Treatment - HPV can not be cured. There are several ways to remove visible genital warts, but the virus stays in your body and can cause future outbreaks. A doctor can get rid of smaller warts by freezing them or by burning them off with an acidic chemical. In severe cases, wart treatment may require laser surgery. All three procedures can typically be done in a doctor's office with local anesthetic.	An estimated 40 million American's are infected with over 1 million reported cases per year. Currently the fastest growing STD. Incurable
Herpes (HSV-2) (top)	A chronic, lifelong viral infection. Symptoms vary - some people have no visible symptoms. Other experience burning sensation in the genitals, lower back pain, and pain when urinating. Painful blisters around the sex organs may appear. It may produce fever, enlarged lymph glands, flu-like symptoms.	Diagnosis can be made by a physical exam alone. For testing, the doctor will collect a small amount of fluid from the sores and send it to the lab to see if the herpes virus is present. It may take up to two weeks to get the results. If no sores are present, testing may be difficult. At present, a blood test for herpes is available only in a few research centers. Treatment: Though painful and episodic it can be treated but there's no cure. Treatment is designed to reduce outbreaks, shorten the duration of the outbreak and reduces the symptoms.	Almost 500,000 reported new cases per year. Estimated 40 million people infected. Incurable
Hepatitis B (top)	Another silent killer. Symptoms can be silent for years. Spread through infected blood and bodily fluids such as semen.	A vaccine exists, but there's no cure; can cause cancer of the liver.	300,000 reported new cases per year. Incurable
HIV - AIDS (top)	*There are NO symptoms.* HIV can be hidden in the body for a long period of time. The virus causes AIDS which is a disease in which the immune system begins to fail and chronic illness begins. On average, it takes about 7 to 9 years for symptoms to develop. Symptoms can include: severe loss of weight, fever, headaches, drenching night sweats, fatigue, severe diarrhea, shortness of breath, and difficulty in swallowing. The symptoms are usually episodic and can last for weeks or months at a time. AIDS is the sixth leading cause of death among young men and women. The virus is fatal involving a long, painful death. Fatal - Incurable	The only way to detect HIV is through a blood test. Recently a swab test has been offered, but has received mix reviews. It is not always accurate. Testing is preferred between 2 weeks through 6 months after exposure. Treatment: There is not cure of HIV infection or AIDS. Patients are being treated with a mix of antibiotics called the "cocktail", which provide a better quality of life. FATAL	New strains continue to be found. Incurable/Fatal
Syphilis (top)	Syphilis is a serious disease that leads to blindness, heart disease, nervous disorders, insanity, tumors and even death. It has three stages. First stage: painless sore may appear at the spot where the bacteria first entered the body, usually 10 to 90 days after sexual contact. This sore may appear around or in the vagina or on the penis or inside the mouth or anus. Sores inside the anus or vagina are often unnoticed and may disappear on their own if not treated, but the infection remains. Stage Two: occurs 3 weeks to 6 months after stage one. Flu-like symptoms and possible hair loss are primary. Rash with infectious spots are also associated with stage two. Although extremely rare tertiary syphilis can appear 3 to 10 years or more after stage one and two. Symptoms of this stage include skin lesions, mental deterioration, loss of balance and vision, loss of sensation, shooting pains in the legs and heart disease.	See a doctor immediately if there's a chance you have been exposed. A simple blood test can usually determine whether or not your have the disease. However, if you become infected 2 to 3 weeks prior to testing, the blood test might not be sensitive enough to pick it up. Treatment: Fortunately, syphilis can be treated with proper antibiotics. The most common is penicillin injections.	Over 120,000 reported new cases reported each year. Curable - antibiotic.
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (top)*	Chronic pelvic pain, fever, flu-like symptoms, pain during or after intercourse, vaginal bleeding, foul smelling discharge, tenderness in lower abdomen, and chills. Can cause ectopic pregnancies, infertility and abscesses in the pelvis. Can be life threatening - very serious.		Caused by over 10 different organisms. About 1 million new cases per year. Abortion procedures can increase your risk of contracting PID. Requires antibiotics. Prompt treatment of PID is important. Infection of the fallopian tubes may lead to scarring and adhesions (bands of scar tissue) that can obstruct the tubes, causing infertility. Over one in twelve women are left infertile after a first episode of PID, one in five are infertile after a second episode, and 40% are left sterile after three or more episodes of PID -- Curable.