STD Information

Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) remain a major public health challenge in the United States. While substantial progress has been made in preventing, diagnosing, and treating certain STDs in recent years, CDC estimates that approximately 19 million new infections occur each year, almost half of them among young people ages 15 to 24. In addition to the physical and psychological consequences of STDs, these diseases also exact a tremendous economic toll. Direct medical costs associated with STDs in the United States are estimated at up to $14.7 billion annually in 2006 dollars.

STD Symptoms
BV Most women have no symptoms. Women with symptoms may have:

  • vaginal itching
  • pain when urinating
  • discharge with a fishy odor
Chlamydia Most women have no symptoms. Women with symptoms may have:

  • abnormal vaginal discharge
  • burning when urinating
  • bleeding between menstrual periods

Infections that are not treated, even if there are no symptoms, can lead to:

  • lower abdominal pain
  • low back pain
  • nausea
  • fever
  • pain during sex
  • bleeding between periods
Genital Herpes Some people may have no symptoms. During an “outbreak,” the symptoms are clear:

  • small red bumps, blisters, or open sores on the penis, vagina, or on areas close by
  • vaginal discharge
  • fever
  • headache
  • muscle aches
  • pain when urinating
  • itching, burning, or swollen glands in genital area
  • pain in legs, buttocks, or genital area

Symptoms may go away and then come back. Sores heal after two to four weeks.
Gonorrhea Symptoms are often mild, but most women have no symptoms. Even when women have symptoms, they can sometimes be mistaken for a bladder or another vaginal infection. Symptoms are:

  • pain or burning when urinating
  • yellowish and sometimes bloody vaginal discharge
  • bleeding between menstrual periods
Hepatitis B Some women have no symptoms. Women with symptoms may have:

  • mild fever
  • headache and muscle aches
  • tiredness
  • loss of appetite
  • nausea or vomiting
  • diarrhea
  • dark-colored urine and pale bowel movements
  • stomach pain
  • skin and whites of eyes turning yellow
HIV/AIDS Some women may have no symptoms for 10 years or more. Women with symptoms may have:

  • extreme fatigue
  • rapid weight loss
  • frequent low-grade fevers and night sweats
  • frequent yeast infections (in the mouth)
  • vaginal yeast infections and other STDs
  • pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)
  • menstrual cycle changes
  • red, brown, or purplish blotches on or under the skin or inside the mouth, nose, or eyelids
Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Some women have no symptoms. Women with symptoms may have:

  • visible warts in the genital area, including the thighs. Warts can be raised or flat, alone or in groups, small or large, and sometimes they are cauliflower-shaped.
  • lesions on the cervix and in the vagina
Pubic Lice
  • Itching
  • finding lice
Syphilis Symptoms in the first, or primary stage:

  • a single, painless sore appears, usually in the genital areas but may appear in the mouth
  • if infection is not treated, it moves to the next stage

Symptoms in the next, or secondary, stage are:

  • skin rash on the hands and feet that usually does not itch and clears on its own
  • fever
  • swollen lymph glands
  • sore throat
  • patchy hair loss
  • headaches
  • weight loss
  • muscle aches
  • tiredness

In the latent, or hidden, stage, the symptoms listed above disappear, but the symptoms from the second stage can come back. In the late stage, infection remains in the body and can damage the brain, nerves, eyes, heart, blood vessels, liver, bones, and joints.
Trichomoniasis Symptoms usually appear 5 to 28 days after exposure and can include:

  • yellow, green, or gray vaginal discharge (often foamy) with a strong odor
  • discomfort during sex and when urinating
  • irritation and itching of the genital area
  • lower abdominal pain in rare cases

Most HIV tests are antibody tests that measure the antibodies your body makes against HIV. It can take some time for the immune system to produce enough antibodies for the antibody test to detect and this time period can vary from person to person. This time period is commonly referred to as the “window period”. Most people will develop detectable antibodies within 2 to 8 weeks (the average is 25 days). Even so, there is a chance that some individuals will take longer to develop detectable antibodies. Therefore, if the initial negative HIV test was conducted within the first 3 months after possible exposure, repeat testing should be considered >3 months after the exposure occurred to account for the possibility of a false-negative result. Ninety seven percent will develop antibodies in the first 3 months following the time of their infection. In very rare cases, it can take up to 6 months to develop antibodies to HIV.

Another type of test is an RNA test, which detects the HIV virus directly. The time between HIV infection and RNA detection is 9-11 days. These tests, which are more costly and used less often than antibody tests, are used in some parts of the United States.

For information on HIV testing, you can talk to your health care provider or you can find the location of the HIV testing site nearest to you by calling CDC-INFO 24 Hours/Day at1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636), 1-888-232-6348 (TTY), in English, en Español. Both of these resources are confidential.