Throughout my blog-writing process I have touched on three different subjects: the risks that come with sexual intercourse, microbe reproduction, and the difference your gender makes in what types of microbes live on you. This post is going to relate back to my first post about the risks of sexual intercourse and will expand the discussion to include the value of vaccines and treatment for Sexually Transmitted Diseases.
Some of the STDs that were discussed in my first blog post include, chlamydia, gonorrhea and genital herpes. Of these three STDs, Chlamydia and gonorrhea are treatable with antibiotics, but genital herpes is not. But what if the disease was preventable to begin with? Fortunately, there have been some vaccines made to help prevent some STDs. One of the most popular vaccines is Gardasil. Gardasil was made to help prevent Human Papillomavirus, which commonly causes cervical and vaginal cancer in females and genital warts in both females and males. According to the Gardasil informational website, roughly 30 woman are diagnosed with cervical cancer each day (Garasil.com). Although Gardasil has been primarily recommended for use by female patients, doctors are now recommending for male patients as well. So who should get the vaccine? Accoriding to the Gardasil website, “In boys and young men ages 9 to 26, GARDASIL helps protect against 90% of genital warts cases. GARDASIL also helps prevent girls and young women ages 9 to 26 against 70% of vaginal cancer cases and up to 50% of vulvar cancer cases” (Gardasil.com Learn about GARDASIL). To answer the “who should get it?” question, boys and girls as young as 9 years old can get the vaccine to help prevent the disease. Even if you are already sexually active, it is recommended to get the vaccine.
Since not all sexually transmitted diseases have a vaccine to possibly prevent them, some have antibiotics to cure them once contracted. Chlamydia for example, has a number of antibiotics to kill the Chlamydia bacteria. The list includes, Amoxicillin, Azithromycin, Doxycycline, Erythromycin, Levofloxacin and Ofloxacin (WebMD). If any of the antibiotics are taken properly, the Chlamydia is usually cured. Gonorrhea is the other STD previously mentioned that is treatable with antibiotics. Like Chlamydia, Gonorrhea has a number of antibiotics for treatment, Cefixime, Ceftriaxone, Azithromycin and Doxycyline (WebMD). These antibiotics kill the Gonorrhea bacteria, and if taken exactly as directed, will typically cure the disease.
Microbes have both beneficial and negative qualities. There are many microbial risks that come with sexual contact and intercourse, leading to sexually transmitted diseases. However, if you take precaution and get vaccinated, some diseases can be prevented. But for some who may not be preventable with vaccines, antibiotics for treatment may be available.
