Vaginal or vulvar symptoms — discharge, itching, odor, burning, or pain — most often trace back to one of a handful of causes: the STIs chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis, and the non-STI condit
White spots or patches on the genitals most often come from harmless normal anatomy — Fordyce spots and pearly penile papules — or from two common infections, genital warts (HPV) and molluscum contagi
Yellow discharge from the vagina or penis is most often caused by a sexually transmitted infection — gonorrhea, chlamydia, or trichomoniasis — but a yeast infection or normal mid-cycle discharge can a
Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is treated outpatient with oral and injected antibiotics for most people, but hospitalization with IV antibiotics is needed when the diagnosis is uncertain, a pelvic
Your partner doesn't get treated for PID itself — PID isn't transmitted from person to person. What can pass between partners are the infections that cause it, usually chlamydia and gonorrhea. So a se
Most women with pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) start feeling better within a few days of starting antibiotics, but full recovery — and protecting your fertility — depends on finishing every dose, t
Yes — you can get PID without ever having an STD. Pelvic inflammatory disease is most often triggered by untreated chlamydia or gonorrhea, but not always. Bacteria normally tied to bacterial vaginosis
Planned Parenthood STD testing usually means a urine sample, a self-collected swab, or a quick blood draw, depending on the infection. Most visits take only minutes, and care is free or sliding-scale
PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) is HIV medicine that people without HIV take to stay HIV-negative. Taken as prescribed, it cuts the risk of getting HIV from sex by about 99% and from injection drug us
Yes. You can lower your HIV risk a lot without PrEP by stacking proven tools: condoms used correctly, regular HIV testing, treatment-as-prevention (U=U — a partner with an undetectable viral load won'
No diet or probiotic cures bacterial vaginosis (BV) or a yeast infection on its own — antibiotics or antifungals do that. But for women who keep relapsing, evidence suggests certain Lactobacillus prob
Recurrent PID means pelvic inflammatory disease has flared more than once — usually because an untreated or re-introduced infection keeps ascending into the uterus, tubes, and ovaries. Each repeat epi
The difference between RPR and FTA-ABS is what each one measures and when it's used. RPR is a nontreponemal screening test that looks for the body's general reaction to syphilis-related damage; FTA-AB
A self-collected HPV test lets you gather your own vaginal sample with a swab — no speculum, no clinician inserting an instrument — and that sample is then checked for high-risk (cancer-causing) HPV t
STD testing is highly accurate once you're past the window period — the gap between exposure and when an infection becomes detectable. Test too early and a negative can be falsely reassuring, because
Yes — if you've had sex with a new partner, getting tested is the only reliable way to know your status before you change anything, like stopping condoms. Many STIs cause no symptoms, so how you feel
After oral sex, the most useful tests are a throat swab for chlamydia and gonorrhea, plus a blood draw for HIV and syphilis. Standard urine-only panels miss throat infections, so ask specifically for
After a sexual assault, STD testing usually starts with a baseline visit — a urine cup or self-collected swab for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis, plus a blood draw for HIV, syphilis, and hep
In most states, minors can consent to STI testing and treatment on their own — without a parent's permission — though the exact age and which infections are covered vary by state. The bigger confident
STI testing ranges from free to a few hundred dollars depending on where you go. Health departments, Planned Parenthood, and Title X clinics offer testing free or on an income-based sliding scale. At-
If you're on PrEP, plan on regular STD testing — an HIV test before you start and recurring check-ins while you stay on it. PrEP guards against HIV but not chlamydia, gonorrhea, or syphilis, so clinic
Yes, many urgent care clinics can treat common STIs. They can test for and prescribe antibiotics for bacterial infections like chlamydia and gonorrhea, and start antiviral medicine for herpes. Urgent
The window period is the gap between an exposure and when a test can actually detect that infection. It varies by STD: HIV can show up on a nucleic acid test in roughly 10-33 days, while chlamydia and
STI screening for trans men should follow your anatomy and your sexual practices, not your gender identity. If you have a cervix, you may still need cervical screening; if you have receptive throat, v