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STD/STI Symptoms

Chlamydia 

Most people who have Chlamydia have no symptoms. Chlamydia is treatable with antibiotics. 

 

Those with symptoms may notice:

  • Abnormal vaginal discharge

  • Burning sensation when urinating

  • Discharge from their penis

  • Pain and swelling in one or both testicles (although this is less common)

  • Rectal pain

  • Rectal discharge

  • Rectal bleeding

Gonorrhea 

Some people with gonorrhea may have no symptoms at all. Gonorrhea is treatable with antibiotics. 

 

However, those who do have symptoms may have:

  • Painful or burning sensation when urinating

  • White, yellow, or green discharge from the penis

  • Painful or swollen testicles (although this is less common)

  • Increased vaginal discharge

  • Vaginal bleeding between periods

  • Rectal discharge

  • Rectal itching

  • Rectal soreness

  • Rectal bleeding

  • Painful bowel movements

Genital Herpes

Most people who have genital herpes have no symptoms or have very mild symptoms. They may not notice mild symptoms, or they may mistake them for another skin condition, such as a pimple or ingrown hair. Because of this, most people who have herpes do not know it.

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Symptoms can include:

  • One or more blisters on or around genitals, rectum or mouth

  • These blisters break and leave painful sores that may take a week or more to heal

  • The first time someone has an outbreak they may also have flu-like symptoms such as fever, body aches, or swollen glands

  • After an initial outbreak you can have repeat outbreaks, especially if they are infected with HSV-2. These repeat outbreaks are usually shorter and less severe than the first

Hepatitis

Please consult the link below to see information on Hepatitis.

HIV/AIDS 

 

Symptoms may include:

  • Within 2 to 4 weeks after infection with HIV, people may experience a flu-like illness, which may last for a few weeks. This is the body's natural response to infection.

  • When people have acute HIV infection, they have a large amount of virus in their blood and are have a higher risk of transmitting HIV to other during sex or sharing needles.

  • But people with acute infection are often unaware that they're infected because they may not feel sick right away or at all.

  • To know whether someone has an HIV infection, they must get tested.

HPV

Most people who get HPV never develop symptoms and the infection usually goes away completely by itself.

 

However, if HPV does not go away, it can cause:

  • Genital warts

  • Certain kinds of cancer

 

See your healthcare provider if you have questions about anything new or unusual such as warts, or unusual growths, lumps, or sores on your penis, scrotum, anus, mouth, or throat. 

Syphilis

Symptoms of syphilis in adults vary by stage. Syphilis is treatable with antibiotics. 

 

Primary Stage- During the first stage of syphilis, you may notice:

  • A single sore, or multiple sores

    • The sore is the location where Syphilis entered your body

  • Sores are usually (but not always) firm, round, and painless

  • Even after the sore goes away, you must still receive treatment. This will stop your infection from moving to the secondary stage

 

Secondary Stage-During the secondary stage:

  • You may have skin rashes and/or mucous membrane lesions (sores in the mouth, vagina, or anus)

  • This stage usually starts with a rash on one or more areas of the body. The rash can show up when the primary sore is healing or several weeks after the sore has healed

  • The rash can look like rough, red, or reddish-brown spots on the palms of the hands and/or the bottoms of the feet

  • The rash usually won’t itch, and it is sometimes so faint that it is hardly noticeable

  • Other symptoms can include fever, swollen lymph glands, sore throat, patchy hair loss, headaches, weight loss, muscle aches, and fatigue (feeling very tired)

  • The symptoms from this stage will go away whether or not you receive treatment. Without the right treatment, your infection will move to the latent and possibly tertiary stages of syphilis

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Latent Stage

  • The latent stage of syphilis is a period of time when there are no visible signs or symptoms of syphilis. If you do not receive treatment, you can continue to have syphilis in your body for years without any signs or symptoms.

 

Tertiary Stage- Most people with untreated syphilis do not develop tertiary syphilis. However, when it does happen it can affect many different organ systems. These include:

  • The heart and blood vessels

  • The brain and nervous system

  • Tertiary syphilis is very serious and would occur 10–30 years after the infection began.  In tertiary syphilis, the disease damages internal organs and can result in death

 

Neurosyphilis and Ocular Syphilis

Without treatment, syphilis can spread to the brain and nervous system (neurosyphilis) or to the eye (ocular syphilis). This can happen during any of the stages described above.

Symptoms of neurosyphilis include:

  • Severe headache

  • Difficulty coordinating muscle movements

  • Paralysis (not able to move certain parts of the body)

  • Numbness

  • Dementia (a mental disorder)

Symptoms of ocular syphilis include changes in vision and even blindness.

Trichomoniasis

About 70% of infected people do not have any signs or symptoms. When trichomoniasis does cause symptoms, they can range from mild irritation to severe inflammation. Symptoms can come and go. Some people with symptoms get them within 5 to 28 days after being infected. Others do not develop symptoms until much later. Trichomoniasis is reatable with antibiotics. 

 

People with trichomoniasis may notice:

  • Itching or irritation inside the penis

  • Burning after urination or ejaculation

  • Discharge from the penis

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