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Sex Trap

By On · Add Comment · In Centers of Disease Control (CDC), chlamydia, ectopic pregnancy, gonorrhea, HIV, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), syphilis

What’s old is new again, especially in the world of sex. It seems that we just can’t get enough of the good old days. Let’s reminisce: Free love, orgies, John Holmes, Looking for Mr. Goodbar, Joy of Sex, bath houses–man, that’s hot. Oh wait, let’s not forget our old friends gonorrhea, syphilis and chlamydia. No, no, no…we couldn’t leave them out now, could we? Don’t worry, here they come again.

According to the latest numbers from the Centers of Disease Control (CDC), 2007 saw another rise in syphilis cases–the seventh year in a row–driven by homosexual and bisexual men. Chlamydia has reached an all time high, and gonorrhea is still way up. Blacks are disproportionately affected. Although the black population is only 12%, they make up 70% of gonorrhea cases and almost half of chlamydia and syphilis cases. Black women aged 15 to 19 have the highest rates of chlamydia and gonorrhea, and gonorrhea rates for blacks overall were 19 times higher than for whites, the CDC reports.

Untreated chlamydia and gonorrhea can cause pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and ectopic pregnancy in women–unfortunate since both bacterial infections are preventable, and treatable if found early enough.

Syphilis infection is up 81% since 2000. Damn! Sixty five percent of all cases are among gay and bi men. as I reported in this blog back in 2007, many infections are the result of HIV+ men having unprotected sex with other HIV+ men. The idea behind the practice is, “Hey, you’re +, I’m +…let’s party.” But gentlemen, have you forgotten?…the syph? Bad, bad stuff, man.

Here’s the bottom line on all the above STDs–condoms are critical. It’s that simple. Unless you’re in a committed, monogamous relationship (married?), then you better wear the glove, period. Any practice other than that is plain stupid.

Get Tested!

By On · Add Comment · In carriers, chlamydia, ectopic pregnancy, infections, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), sexual health, sexually transmitted disease (STD), sterility
Good news: More than one million sexual health screens were conducted in Britain in 2007, up 10% from 2006.

Bad news: Diagnosed cases of chlamydia increased by more than 22,000 in the United Kingdom. Youch!

Chlamydia isn’t reserved for the UK alone; heck, no–we’ve got plenty of cases in the United States too. Estimates have American chlamydia cases at 2.3 million with less than half of those actually reported in all 50 states. Yikes!!!

So you know what that means? Well, first let me give you a few facts: Chlamydia is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) that is often silent–that is, many people infected with the bacterium (Chlamydia trachomatis) don’t even know it. People that do know generally find out when they develop symptoms: Burning and itching around the penis in men, along with discharge and pissing razor blades. In women, abnormal vaginal discharge or a burning sensation when urinating, while those whose infection spreads to the cervix and fallopian tubes might experience lower abdominal pain, low back pain, nausea, fever, pain during intercourse, or bleeding between menstrual periods.

Worse yet, because chlamydia is silent in so many people–in other words, no symptoms–many cases go undetected, and thus untreated. As a result, infections can progress to serious reproductive and other health problems with both short-term and long-term consequences. In women it can cause pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) (you don’t want that) and ultimately, ectopic pregnancy and infertility (definitely don’t want that) . Complications in men are rare but can lead to infection of the epididymis, which can cause sterility.

OK, so now what does this all mean? First, one in ten women are infected. So guys, one out of every ten women you hit on are potential carriers* And for women who like women…bad news–you can get chlamydia through oral sex, so infection of the throat is not uncommon. And women who like guys–one in every twelve men is infected, so if you have many options in the dating scene…ahem…practice caution. And guys to guys–well, you’ve got the triple threat, so see the prevention tips below.

Finally, which group is catching and passing chlamydia the most? Youngsters–people aged 18-24 are the highest risk group. So what to do? Here are the tips:

  • Keeping it in your pants is the best all around protection, period. Too prudish for you?
  • Then having a long-term, monogamous relationship also helps. But if that just isn’t in the cards,
  • then using condoms, properly, every time you have sex is a must. No glove, no love, baby.
  • and then getting tested annually is a great idea, especially if you’re female, under twenty-five, and sexually active (particularly if you have multiple sex partners).

If you fear that you might have a sexually transmitted disease, don’t hesitate, get tested. If you need further info, check out:

Division of STD Prevention (DSTDP)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
www.cdc.gov/std

*I’m using British numbers here, but for all intents and purposes, we can extrapolate them to qualify the point–U.S. chlamydia numbers are actually 0.1% higher; and since our population is about five times greater than the U.K.’s…well, you do the math.

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