Most often when we hear the word ''STI'', we are quick to think about common ones like HIV, or even Gonorrhea, but it is a lot more than these and even more deep too. For some reason, I started to study some of these sexually transmitted infections and how dangerous they could be to human health.
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Beginning with, trichomoniasis, popularly called "trich", is a common sexually transmitted infection, which means it spreads during sexual intercourse, it has to do with the exchange of vaginal fluids and semen. The infection is caused by Trichomonas vaginalis.
Trich is very common actually, it was researched that about 3.7 million people get this infection yearly.
It is easy for an infection like trichomoniasis to spread as easily as it does because a larger percentage of people who have it do not show symptoms carriers may get to infect others before they are even aware of the disease. When symptoms show, they begin to show within 5-28 days after exposure
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Symptoms are usually more evident in women than they are in men. An infected woman would most likely experience genital redness, itching, discomfort in the lower abdominal region, pain whilst urinating or during sex, and a large amount of thin, foul-smelling discharge from the vagina.
Men on the other hand, most often would not experience symptoms, but when they do, discharge from the penis, burning during urination or while jaculating, and irritation inside the penis.
Let's talk a bit more about the causative factor.
I mentioned above that the infection is caused by Trichomonas vaginalis. It is a tiny parasite, and a one-celled protozoan, which passes between people during genital contact. It can be passed between opposite genders, and sometimes within men.
The parasite infects the lower genital tract. In women, this is the outer part of the genitals, cervix, and urethra. While in men, the parasite infects the inner part of the penis, the urethra.
While trichomoniasis can affect anyone, it is more common amongst those who have a previous case of trichomoniasis, who have multiple sexual partners, a history of other STIs, and those who have unprotected sex.
This infection is more dangerous for pregnant women as they may have a baby with low birth weight, deliver prematurely, or worse case even pass the infection to the baby through the birth canal.
The bad thing about trichomoniasis is that it causes irritation in the genital area which makes it even more easy for other STIs to penetrate the body and most likely even pass them to others.
With the above statement in mind, it is important to also note that an untreated case of trichomoniasis can increase your chances of getting infected with HIV, and certainly, an untreated case of HIV would lead to AIDS.
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Gladly, it can be treated. Antibiotics are often provided to help kill the parasite that caused the infection. If the infection is left untreated, it will not go away on its own, and could even last up to a year and during this time, it may be passed to other sexual partners.
There is also a possibility of re-infection even after treatment, it is often a smart idea to treat the infection at the same time with your sexual partner and wait until after to resume sex or as prescribed by your doctor.
For Further Studies
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/trichomoniasis
https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/230617-overview?form=fpf#a3
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/4696-trichomoniasis
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/trichomoniasis/symptoms-causes/syc-20378609
Hi, I am Tobi, a writer, speaker, relationship blogger, and lover of good music. I love making friends and learning from people. If you want to hear me speak on relationships and general life issues, you can find my YouTube channel where you can watch any episode for free, please do not forget to subscribe, friends. I sincerely appreciate every love I get from here, Kindly do well to keep them coming.