Summary
The term "sexually transmitted infections" (STIs) refers to a group of infections that are mainly transmitted via sexual intercourse. The most common symptoms of STIs are pain in the suprapubic and genital area, urethral or vaginal discharge, and genital lesions, which may or may not be painful. Some STIs (e.g., HPV) may induce or predispose to malignant changes. The majority of STIs are asymptomatic, and therefore easily spread. If a patient is already infected with an STI, they are predisposed to coinfections with further STIs. There are various treatment options for each STI, with simultaneous treatment of the partner often necessary to prevent recurrent infections. In some cases, health care providers are required by law to report cases of STIs to county and health state departments (e.g., HIV, hepatitis B).
Overview of sexually transmitted infections
Prevention
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Preexposure prophylaxis
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Safe sex practices
- Abstinence
- Condom use during vaginal sex or anal sex
- Dental dam use during oral sex
- Mutual monogamy
- Reducing number of sex partners
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Vaccination
- HPV, HBV, and HAV vaccine
- See “ACIP immunization schedule” for details.
- Disease-specific prophylaxis
- See “Hepatitis B preexposure prophylaxis” for details.
- See “HIV preexposure prophylaxis” for details
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Safe sex practices
- Adherence to screening guidelines for STIs
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Postexposure prophylaxis
- HIV postexposure prophylaxis
- Hepatitis B postexposure prophylaxis
- Antibiotic postexposure prophylaxis (e.g., doxycycline for chlamydia or syphilis) [3]
- Self-sampling/-testing and pooled sampling
- Expedited partner therapy
Genital lesions
Overview of genital lesions | ||
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Pathogen | Clinical features | Diagnosis |
Painless lesions | ||
Human papillomavirus type 6 and 11 |
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Klebsiella granulomatis |
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Chlamydia trachomatis L1–L3 |
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Treponema pallidum |
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Painful lesions | ||
Herpes simplex virus type 1 and 2 (mostly HSV-2) |
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Haemophilus ducreyi |
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