Chancroid symptoms are one or more deep, painful genital ulcers along with tender, swollen lymph nodes in the groin that can fill with pus. The ulcers are soft and ragged, and they hurt — which sets c
Cervical dysplasia is the abnormal, precancerous change of cells on the cervix caused by a persistent high-risk HPV infection; cervical cancer is what those changes can become if they aren't caught an
Bacterial vaginosis, a yeast infection, and trichomoniasis are the three conditions most often confused with each other. BV usually brings a thin gray discharge with a fishy odor; a yeast infection br
BV, a yeast infection, and trichomoniasis all cause discharge, itching, and irritation, but they differ in cause and cure. BV and trich produce a thin discharge with a fishy odor; yeast brings thick,
BV treatment means a short, defined course of antibiotics — the CDC-recommended options are oral metronidazole, metronidazole vaginal gel, or clindamycin vaginal cream. All three cure most acute episo
BV testing checks whether the bacteria in your vagina have shifted out of balance. A clinician confirms bacterial vaginosis using the Amsel criteria — thin discharge, clue cells, a vaginal pH above th
Bacterial vaginosis (BV) shows up as a thin white or gray discharge, a strong fish-like odor that gets worse after sex, and sometimes itching, burning, or a sting when you pee. Many people have no sym
Recurrent BV means three or more episodes of bacterial vaginosis in a year. It usually isn't a sign your first treatment failed — it's the condition's tendency to relapse. Standard antibiotics clear m
BV in pregnancy is a common bacterial imbalance that's linked to preterm delivery and low birth weight. It's safely treated with oral metronidazole or vaginal metronidazole gel or clindamycin cream. T
BV sometimes clears on its own, but you shouldn't count on it. Mild cases can resolve when normal vaginal bacteria rebound, yet untreated BV raises the risk of acquiring HIV and other STIs and, in pre
The difference comes down to cause. Bacterial and parasitic STIs — chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and trichomoniasis — are curable with antibiotics . Viral STIs — herpes, HIV, hepatitis B, and HPV —
The term "autoimmune hepatitis" describes liver inflammation driven by your own immune system, but the question most people are really asking is about hepatitis B — a vaccine-preventable, blood-borne
No — STD symptoms are very often invisible. Many of the most common sexually transmitted infections, including chlamydia, gonorrhea, HIV, and most HPV, cause no symptoms for weeks, years, or ever. Fee
An anal Pap smear (anal cytology) collects cells from the anal canal with a soft swab to look for HPV-related precancer. It's not a blanket CDC recommendation — current US guidance found the evidence
Anal dysplasia means abnormal, precancerous cells in the lining of the anal canal, almost always caused by high-risk HPV; left unchecked, high-grade dysplasia can progress to anal cancer. HPV causes m
There's no herbal, supplement, or alternative remedy proven to cure or reliably suppress genital herpes. The only treatments with solid evidence are three prescription antivirals — acyclovir, valacycl
Living with HIV today is different from the picture most people carry in their heads. The eight facts that matter most: HIV attacks the immune system but is now a manageable, lifelong condition; there
Talking about chlamydia breaks the silence because the infection is itself silent: about three-quarters of infected women and half of infected men have no symptoms, so it spreads invisibly until someo
Older adults living with HIV often carry a double burden: a lifelong, manageable infection plus financial strain, isolation, and stigma that can hit harder later in life. HIV is treatable and compatib
HIV is not a young person's disease. People over 50 make up a meaningful share of new diagnoses, and the virus spreads the same way at any age — through anal or vaginal sex and shared needles. Older a
Dormant proviruses are HIV's genetic blueprint silently parked inside long-lived immune cells. They are the main reason HIV has no cure: antiretroviral treatment can drive the virus to undetectable le
Half of all new STIs in the US happen to people aged 15–24. Most of them never get tested — partly because myths about who gets STIs, what they feel like, and what testing actually covers are remarkably durable. We're correcting 10 of the most consequential ones.
Twenty million new sexually transmitted infections occur in the United States every year. Chlamydia remains the most reported bacterial infection at 1.65 million cases (2023), syphilis has hit a 70-year high, and gonorrhea is an urgent antibiotic-resistance threat. This hub compiles the latest CDC surveillance data, multi-year trend lines, and demographic breakdowns — everything needed to understand the modern STI burden in America.
Abnormal vaginal discharge is one of the most common reasons women seek STI testing. Here's how to tell BV from chlamydia from yeast — and when to get tested.