Spring Break
One in four teenage girls has an STD
Issue date: 3/13/08
"Health professionals have to use every opportunity to offer young women the HPV vaccine," Joffe said.
"The vaccine is indicated for any woman up to age 26, so they should get it, regardless of sexual history or prior infection with HPV," he added.
The results were also broken down along racial lines, with African-Americans having the highest STI prevalence of 48 percent, compared to 20 percent among both whites and Mexican-Americans.
This study, which was presented at a CDC conference earlier this month, has reignited the debate over American sex education, with many saying the emphasis on abstinence rather than safe sex has contributed to this alarmingly high figure.
Many health professionals argue that teens should be informed with the knowledge of how to prevent the spread of STIs, as abstinence is not a realistic alternative for many teenagers.
Experts generally agree that, while abstinence still is the best option for disease prevention, teenagers also need to be informed of other ways of practicing safer sex, such as condom use and mutually monogamous relationships.
"Health education curricula are continually evolving, but experts have identified many of the key components to success," Joffe said. "Of course, that doesn't address the political issue of getting these curricula into schools."
More than half of the girls who had three or more partners were infected. However, even among girls who reported having only one lifetime partner, one-fifth had at least one STI.
Although it is undeniable that condoms reduce the risk of becoming infected with an STI, they are not a completely fail-safe way of preventing their transmission.
According to the Food and Drug Administration, while condoms are highly effective against the spread of chlamydia, trichomoniasis, HIV, gonorrhea and hepatitis B, they are less effective against genital herpes and syphilis. For HPV, protection from a condom is "partial at best."
Most importantly, these findings underscore the importance of getting regular screenings and vaccinations for such diseases, since many, including HPV, chlamydia, trichomoniasis and genital herpes, do not produce any obvious symptoms.
Both men and women can be infected with many STIs and be entirely unaware. Carriers of an STI are often able to pass on the disease to a sexual partner. If left untreated, such infections can pose many long-term problems, including infertility and cancer.
However, getting tested for STIs can be as easy as a trip to the Health and Wellness Center. "We have eliminated a lot of barriers in that the visits are free and the tests are free for females and males," Joffe said.
"If you are having sex, get yourself and your partner tested for chlamydia and other STDs and use condoms consistently and correctly."
"The vaccine is indicated for any woman up to age 26, so they should get it, regardless of sexual history or prior infection with HPV," he added.
The results were also broken down along racial lines, with African-Americans having the highest STI prevalence of 48 percent, compared to 20 percent among both whites and Mexican-Americans.
This study, which was presented at a CDC conference earlier this month, has reignited the debate over American sex education, with many saying the emphasis on abstinence rather than safe sex has contributed to this alarmingly high figure.
Many health professionals argue that teens should be informed with the knowledge of how to prevent the spread of STIs, as abstinence is not a realistic alternative for many teenagers.
Experts generally agree that, while abstinence still is the best option for disease prevention, teenagers also need to be informed of other ways of practicing safer sex, such as condom use and mutually monogamous relationships.
"Health education curricula are continually evolving, but experts have identified many of the key components to success," Joffe said. "Of course, that doesn't address the political issue of getting these curricula into schools."
More than half of the girls who had three or more partners were infected. However, even among girls who reported having only one lifetime partner, one-fifth had at least one STI.
Although it is undeniable that condoms reduce the risk of becoming infected with an STI, they are not a completely fail-safe way of preventing their transmission.
According to the Food and Drug Administration, while condoms are highly effective against the spread of chlamydia, trichomoniasis, HIV, gonorrhea and hepatitis B, they are less effective against genital herpes and syphilis. For HPV, protection from a condom is "partial at best."
Most importantly, these findings underscore the importance of getting regular screenings and vaccinations for such diseases, since many, including HPV, chlamydia, trichomoniasis and genital herpes, do not produce any obvious symptoms.
Both men and women can be infected with many STIs and be entirely unaware. Carriers of an STI are often able to pass on the disease to a sexual partner. If left untreated, such infections can pose many long-term problems, including infertility and cancer.
However, getting tested for STIs can be as easy as a trip to the Health and Wellness Center. "We have eliminated a lot of barriers in that the visits are free and the tests are free for females and males," Joffe said.
"If you are having sex, get yourself and your partner tested for chlamydia and other STDs and use condoms consistently and correctly."
Be the first to comment on this story