Health Aspects of Human Sexuality Exam 4

STI did you know?

1 in 2 sexually active people will get an STI by age 25 and most won’t even know it

Sexually Transmitted Infections

• Over 28 known STIs

• Half of new cases occur in 15-24 year-olds

• Can be transmitted to genitals, mouth, eyes, nose, and other parts of body (open orifice

• Spread through oral, anal, and vagina

• Asymptomatic mostly

What is the biggest myth ever?

Safe sex

Who is more susceptible to STIs? Men or Women?

Women are more susceptible b/c they have an open reproductive system

• Women go to the doctor more & are more quick to go to the doctor for treatment

What is the Transformation Zone?

Area on the cervix that grows smaller as a woman ages

• In this zone, rectangular columnar cells are constantly changing into flat, scale-like squamous cells

• Teenage girls & young woman are more susceptible to infection because this zone is larger

• Columnar & squamous epith cells meet.

  • This is the major reason why women get cervical cancer are STI’s especially HPV

Bacterial STIs

Chlamydia

• Most common bacterial STI

• Most frequently reported infectious diseases in the US

• Often asymptomatic, called ‘the silent disease’

• Leading cause of infertility (Pelvic Inflammatory Disease)

Gonorrhea (i.e. ‘morning drip’)

• Males often have symptoms; females do not

• New gonorrhea strains are resistant to drugs

• Can also lead to infertility in men & women

Syphilis

• Most symptomatic of the bacterial STIs

Treatment for Bacterial STIs

Treatable b/c of antibiotics

40% of gonorrhea & chlamydia cases that are unresolved or untreated result to PID

PID→ very painful, can lead to scar tissue which can cause infertility

Chlamydia & Gonorrhea - Pregnancy & Delivery

At-risk women are typically screened & treated with an antibiotic during the 1st trimester (however this screening is not always part of the routine 1st trimester tests)

• Greatest danger is transmitting either STI during vaginal delivery

• Chlamydia has been linked to premature birth & miscarriage

• Gonorrhea also linked to premature birth, miscarriage & PPROM

• If Gonorrhea is transmitted during delivery, the infants will have gonorrhea

PPROM

Premature Rupture Membrane

• Water breaks before it has to.

  • Nothing can be done about this & the baby will have to be delivered

Viral STIs - Herpes

Viral STIs mostly start with H’s

Once you get a viral STI, most of the time you will never get rid of it.

• Genital Herpes

  • Most common viral STI worldwide

  • HSV-1 is oral herpes (cold sores); HSV-2 is genital herpes

    • Type 1 likes to bein the mouth & 2 in the genitals, but can switch

  • Worldwide, 11% of people ages 15-49 have genital herpes

  • Spread through oral, anal, vaginal intercourse and skin to skin contact

  • Testing is difficult

  • Symptoms can be treated, but no cure

  • Can be transmitted before and during outbreak

  • Linked to cervical cancer

Once you have herpes you have it forever but it will manifest in moment when immune system is depleted.

Viral STIs - HPV

Human Papilloma Viruses (HPV)

• More than 100 types (some strains cause genital warts)

• Most common STI in the US

• As many as 80% of sexually active people will acquire HPV in their lifetime

• 60% of throat cancer is attributed to HPV (spread via oral sex)

• Most often, this impacts men more than women

Sometimes bosy will spont. cure HPV & some sometime become cancer

HPV Vaccine - Gardasil

Gardasil (2006)

• Protects against 4 types: 2 types most likely to cause cervical cancer & 2 types most likely to cause condyloma (genital warts)

• Recommended for girls and boys ages 9 to 45

• Very important to protect and preserve the cervix so a woman will be able to sustain pregnancy

• 95% of cervical cancers worldwide are from HPV

• Gardasil protects against 4 strains that cause 70% of cancers

Gardasil 9 (introduced in 2014)

• Protects against 5 more strains of HPV (types 31, 33, 45, 52 and 58

HIV/AIDS

HIV causes AIDS

AIDS is an acronym for acquired immune deficiency syndrome

A - acquired, not inherited

I – immune system

D – deficiency (lacks immunity)

S - syndrome (symptoms occur as a group)

*Less than half of HIV-infected people aged 15-26 know they are infected

*An individual who contracts HIV is most infectious directly after acquiring HIV (before testing is possible)

Ho do other STIs affect HIV & How is HIV transmitted?

Infection with another STI increases chance of contracting HIV by 2-5 times

HIV is transmitted via oral, anal, & vaginal sex (and through child birth/ breast feeding in infants)

Drug cocktail treatments are very effective, but extremely expensive ($620,000 for lifetime treatment)

HAART: highly active antiretroviral therapy

• Start ASAP after being diagnosed with HIV

6 weeks to 6 months after initial infection is required for antibody detection in blood test

Free, anonymous testing available

HIV Cure - 2007

2007: The ‘Berlin Patient’ (Timothy Brown)

Stem Cell transplant to fight leukemia resulted in his ‘functional cure’ from HIV

Stem Cell donor had gene mutation CCR5

Brown no longer takes antiretroviral

• Both cases were treated as part of cancer treatment; not helpful for average person yet

HIV Cure - 2017

2017: The ‘London Patient’

Stem Cell transplant to fight lymphoma resulted in his cure

• Both cases were treated as part of cancer treatment; not helpful for average person yet

Where is HIV More prevalent?

The south accounted for more than half (52%) of HIV diagnosis in 2022.

PREP

Pre-exposure prophylaxis: daily medicine which reduces the risk of getting HIV by more than 90%

Designed for individuals at ‘very high risk’ for contracting HIV

Combination of 2 HIV medications (tenofovir & emtricitabine) sold under the name Truvada

May assist women who are trying to get pregnant from contracting HIV if the partner is HIV +

In June 2025, FDA approved a twice yearly shot called Lenacapavir which is

100% effective for women and 96% effective for men at preventing HIV transfer

Parasitic STIs

Pubic Lice “Crabs” & Scabies

Head lice are larger than pubic lice

• Spread through sexual contact

• Also spread through infected bed linens, towels, and clothes

• Viable for 72 hrs

• Treatable

• Highly contagious

• Must tell anyone that you’ve had close contact with

Very symptomatic

Not forever

DIY At-Home STI Testing

Oraquick HIV test: only rapid RESULTS home testing kit ($30)

Some of these companies are subscription-based

If the specimen is correctly collected, these are very accurate tests (lab quality is identical to a doctor’s office)

My Lab Box: receive results in 3-5 days (up to 14 STIs tested at the same time)

Free physician consultation if you test positive

Checks oral, anal, genital areas

$79-$397 depending on which

No one STI test that looks for everything

STI Testing and Prevention

No single test for all STIs

• Urine test/culture: chlamydia, gonorrhea

• Blood test: hepatitis B, HIV, syphillis

• Visual inspection: herpes, pubic lice

Remember, many STIs are asymptomatic, so you will never know if you’re infected unless you are tested

Free testing at many pregnancy centers and health departments

STI Prevention

• Abstinence (only 100% way to avoid STIs is no oral, anal or vaginal sex)

• Mutually monogamous relationship with an uninfected partner

What is Paraphilia?

If something is abnormal, it is labeled as a ___ or literally “Beyond Normal” “Love/Attraction”

• Has to be recurrent for at least 6 months

• Must feel distress about the interest to be diagnosed

According to the APA, a paraphilia is characterized by

• Recurrent or intense sexually arousing fantasies, sexual urges, or behaviors lasting at least 6 months

• Usually unusual, extraordinary, or bizarre activities

• Person must feel distress about their interest

• Paraphilias may include:

  • Nonhuman objects

  • Suffering or humiliation of self or partner

  • Non-consenting people

Fast Facts on Paraphilias

Paraphilias often appear in clusters: if a person has one, they often have another

Paraphilias are more common in men than in women (the one exception is sexual masochism- women are also interested in this

What is Fetishism?

Sexual attraction to an object, which is required or preferred for sexual arousal

Fetishism is a spectrum condition

Most people have slight fetishistic traits (e.g. a person may prefer certain body parts or partners that look a certain way)

If you literally CAN NOT be aroused without the object, then it may be a major issue with your partner

• Examples: shoes, gloves, lingerie, leather, latex

• Over 20% of college men & %10 of college women had a sexual shoe fetish

What is Partialism?

Exclusive attraction to particular body parts

• Examples: feet, ears, breasts, elbows

• To meet APA definition of fetishism, one must not be able to have sex without the fetish

Transvestic Disorder

Describes people who cross-dress to achieve sexual arousal and find that the urge to cross-dress causes significant distress or impairment in daily life

• Distinct from transgenderism

• More common in men

• 3% of men have worn women’s clothing for sexual arousal

Sexual Sadism

Urges or fantasies of intentionally inflicting physical or psychological pain or suffering on a partner

Sexual Masochism

Recurring sexual urge or fantasy of being humiliated or caused to suffer through real acts, not simulated ones

Prevalence of Sexual Sadism & Masochism?

Popularized by the Fifty Shades of Grey book and movie series

Prevalence in the US is around 2% of adults

Bondage & Discipline

A form of masochism

Deriving sexual pleasure from being bound, tied up, or otherwise restricted

Can be a type of fantasy sex characterized by shared and elaborate scripts

Power is central element

Sometimes includes a “safe” word

Autoerotic Asphxia

The enhancement of sexual excitement & orgasm by pressure-induced oxygen deprivation

• 1,000 people die each year from this (mostly men)