Sexually transmitted diseases

Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Introduction

Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are also called as venereal diseases, that are passed mainly from person to another (which are transmitted) during sexual intercourse.There are at least 25 different sexually transmitted diseases with a variety of different symptoms. These diseases can spread through vaginal, anal and oral sex and can be spread without having sexual intercourse, i.e. it can be passed on from mother to infant during pregnancy, through sharing of needles or syringes or through blood transfusions.

Sexually transmitted diseases remain endemic in all societies, and the range of diseases spread by sexual activity continues to increase. STDs are caused by both bacteria as well as virus.

The common symptoms that are associated with STDs are; urethral discharge, genital ulcers, vaginal discharge caused by Candida albicans, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and Chlamydia etc. Sexually transmitted diseases seen in the tropics are chancroid, granuloma inguinale and lymphogranuloma venereum. They may be present with ulceration in the genital cavity and inguinal lymphadenopathy. The aspects of management of all STDs are; accurate diagnosis and effective treatment, screening for other STDs, patient education and contact tracing to the patient's sexual partners so that it can be prevented from spreading further.

Discussion

STDs are caused by either bacterial or viral infections. The most common types of STDs are HIV, AIDS, gonorrhea, syphilis and urethritis etc.

HIV and AIDS:

AIDS is the disease that develops as a result of progressive destruction of the immune system (body's defenses), caused by a virus discovered in 1983 and named the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The word AIDS comes from the initials of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, which is the inability of the immune system to fight infections and other pathological processes. AIDS is not a result of an inherited disorder, but the result of exposure to HIV infection, which facilitates the development of new opportunistic infections, tumors and other processes. The virus remains dormant and destroys a certain type of lymphocytes, cells that defend the body's immune system.

Immunodeficiency syndrome is a table which shows a deficit of humeral immunity, cellular or both, and is characterized by an increased susceptibility to infections, and in some cases diseases autoimmune diseases, and even one of them, isolated deficiency of IgA, reaching an incidence of about 1 for every 600 individuals. The defect in humeral immunity often causes chronic or recurrent infections of the lungs, meningitis and bacteremia, usually by bacteria phylogenic (H. influenza, S. pneumonia, etc.). The deficiency in cellular immunity predisposes to disseminated viral infections (mainly viruses as latent herpes simplex or cytomegalovirus), candidacies and other systemic fungal infections, especially to pneumonia caused by Pneumocystis carinii. Finally, patients with both humeral and cellular deficits are exposed to all infections, even by those agencies that are not considered pathogens. The treatment of these syndromes is extremely difficult, in constant evolution and long-running argument.

Healthy individuals are protected against microorganisms through different mechanisms. Some of these protective mechanisms include innate immunity (also called natural or native). The characteristics of innate immunity is limited to the ability to discriminate an organism from another and their nature moderately stereotypical, and its role very similar against most infectious agents. The essential elements of innate immunity are: 1) physical and chemical barred as epithelia ...