STD Facts

Some important information about sexually transmitted diseases

CHLAMYDIA
Symptoms: Men - Usually none. Some have discharge from the penis and burning with urination. Women - Usually none. Some have pain and/or vaginal discharge.	Damage: Men - Sterility. Women - Considered to be the most common cause of sterility. Advanced stage may require removal of uterus, tubes and ovaries.
Numbers: 4 million new cases reported annually; 70% are not aware they are infected; 40% of those sexually active are suspected carriers
GONORRHEA
Symptoms: Men - Pus from urethra. Burning upon urination. Women - Pelvic pain; painful urination and pus-like discharge.	Damage: Men - Sterility. Scarring of the urethra and urinary tract problems. Women - Sterility. Surgery in severe cases.
Numbers: 1.1 million new cases reported annually. 80% are not aware they are infected in the early stages.
SYPHILIS
Symptoms: Men - 1st stage: Swollen nonpainful ulcers on external genitals; 2nd stage: Changes of skin, fever, enlarged lymph nodes. Women -- 1st stage: Often unnoticed; 2nd stage: Same as men.	Damage: Men: Brain disorders, heart disease; blindness, dementia and death. Women: Same as men. Can cause birth defects or death in newborns if mother is infected.
Numbers: 120,000 new cases reported annually. 50% are not aware they have the disease.
GENITAL HERPES
Symptoms: Men - Lesions appear at the site of infection - periodic eruptions of painful blister and ulcers anywhere on the body. Women: Same as men.	Damage: Men - Continuous outbreaks. Eventually may lead to hospitalization. Lifetime medication required. Women - Same as men. Causes infant death.
Numbers: 30 million infected. 500,000 new cases reported annually. 73% show no symptoms. 20% of those sexually active have this disease.
HUMAN PAPILLOMA VIRUS (HPV)
Symptoms: Men - Wart-like genital growths. Women - Often no visible symptoms. Some experience vulvar burning, itching and pain. Abnormal pap smears.	Damage: Men - Cancer of the penis and anus. Women - Initially premalignant changes difficult to eradicate. Develops into cancer if not treated.
Numbers: 24-40 million people are thought to be carriers. 60 different strains exist today. 33% of women have this virus.
HEPATITIS B
Symptoms: Men - Often none. Some experience yellowing of the skin (jaundice), tiredness, dark urine and gray- colored stools. Women - Same as men.	Damage: Men: Severe liver damage. Can eventually lead to cancer and of the liver and cirrhosis. Women: Same as men.
Numbers: 300,000 new cases annually. The most common STD in the world. 40% to 50% of children born to infected mothers develop liver cancer.
PELVIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASE (PID)
Symptoms: Men - This disease affects only women. Women - See Chlamydia and Gonorrhea. Often symptoms are minor and mistaken for menstrual cramps.	Damage: Women - Ectopic pregnancy which is fatal to the baby and life-threatening to the woman. Sterility and cancer are common.
Numbers: 1 million new cases annually, most in the 15-19 year age group. 100,000 women become infertile as a result of PID each year.
HIV/AIDS
Symptoms: Men: Fever, sore throat, fatigue, swollen lymph glands. Women - Same as men.	Damage: Men - Immune system breaks down; death. Women: Same as men.
Numbers: 1 million infected. Approximately 20% in young adult population. 20% infected during the teen years.
Statistics are for 1998, Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia More info about STD's...

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