Most sexually active adults will get at least one sexually transmitted infection/disease (STD or sometimes called STI), in the course of their lifetime. While there are many types of STDs, the primary categories they fall into are bacterial and viral STDs. Because one is caused by different microorganisms (bacterial) and the other is viral in nature, the treatment varies between each category. For instance, bacterial STDs are typically quickly cured with antibiotics. Viral STIs have treatable symptoms but otherwise incurable, although they may have periods of symptom remission.
Bacteria STD Treatment
If you have had unprotected sex, even if you’re experiencing no unusual symptoms or concerns, it’s important to keep routine STD screenings to check that you’re not carrying a bacterial or viral STD.
Examples of bacterial STIs include:
- Gonorrhea
- Syphilis
- Chlamydia
Often all that is needed to treat a bacterial STI is a single dose of antibiotics. You should abstain from sex for 7 days after you’ve completed your antibiotic regimen and any sores have healed.
Viral STI Treatment
Unprotected sex with new partners is a risk. Even if you’re not experiencing anything out of the ordinary, you should still make regular appointments for STD tests, even if it’s an incurable one like a viral STI. Treatments have come a long way in recent years and your condition doesn’t have to define you.
Examples of viral STIs include:
- Herpes
- Hepatitis
- HPV (genital warts)
- HIV
Treatment for herpes or HIV is a prescription antiviral drug that can limit herpes sores outbreaks, but you can still infect your partner even while you don’t have an outbreak. Antiviral drugs can also keep HIV infections stable for many years.
Are Bacterial STIs Less Serious than Viral STIs?
Any STI should be treated early. However, because bacterial STIs can be cured with antibiotics, some may consider them “no big deal,” yet they still must be treated promptly. Without medical intervention, they can cause long-term health concerns, including pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility or sterility, cervical cancer, and more.
Are You Sexually Active & Have More than One Partner? Get Tested for STIs at Advance ER.
At Advance ER, we are your partners for a healthier tomorrow. We are nonjudgmental and happy you are taking your health seriously and being proactive rather than reactive once symptoms set in to get an STI test. Not all STD symptoms are readily apparent, making it very important to be screened regularly if you’re sexually active and have more than one partner.
Our team at Advance ER keeps your visit confidential, including any medical treatment you may receive. We will send your specimens to our laboratory for testing and typically it takes a few days for results to come back. Our office will call you to follow up to inform you of your result, and patients who are test positive will be asked to book an appointment back to start treatment.
For further information about bacterial and viral STDs or to schedule an STD test at Advance ER, please call (214) 494-8222 now.