Check this STD testing quiz to see whether you need to have a STD exam based on your symptoms and recent sexual behavior. Below the form you can find more information on the risks you might take and the most frequent sexually transmitted infections and their early signs.
How does the STD testing quiz work?
This questionnaire focuses on questions that have to do with both your sexual behavior and any symptoms, general to specific that you might be experiencing and that could be put in relation to a sexually transmitted infection.
There are ten questions you need to answer and then press the get results button. You are then going to be directed whether to see a specialist for further medical testing and you might also receive some useful info in relation to your answers.
What is STD testing?
STD testing is very easy to get in most countries through a health care provider. Actively sexual people should get tested from time to time, especially if they had unprotected intercourse of any kind.
Getting tested even just as a preventive method can keep you safe and also provide you treatment at the right time.
The most common symptoms of an infection of this kind include sores on the genital area, itching, different discharges from the penis or vagina and also a burning sensation during urination.
The main issue is that in the case of many STDs, there might not be any symptoms present thus making them even harder to detect.
Many people might have caught such infections and don’t even know it and contribute to spreading them by not using condoms, female condoms, dental dams or other barriers of protection.
What you need to know is that there are different types of test that are specific for each infection but most of them are not invasive and involve little discomfort.
You can find the methods in the table below. Before the test there is going to be a discussion with the medical professional that will involve questions about your sexual practices, any current or past symptoms and whether you’ve ever had such an infection.
In some cases, especially those that exhibit physical symptoms, diagnosis can be put right away while in other cases the test results might come in a few days up to several weeks.
Most common STDs and their testing methods
| Herpes | Blood test/ Exam of sore fluid |
| Chlamydia | Physical exam/ Discharge test/ Urine test |
| Genital Warts | Physical exam |
| Gonorrhea | Cell exam test/ Discharge test/ Urine test |
| Hepatitis B | Blood test |
| HIV | Blood test/ Oral swab test |
| Syphilis | Blood test/ Exam of sore fluid |
| Pubic Lice | Physical exam |
| High Risk HPV | Pap smear |
| Pelvic Inflammatory | Pelvic exam/ Blood test/ Discharge test |
| Cytomegalovirus | Blood test |
| Bacterial Vaginosis | Pelvic exam/ Vaginal discharge test |
| Scabies | Physical exam/Cell biopsy |
| Trichomoniasis | Discharge test from vagina/ urethra |
Sexually transmitted infections risk
STDs, also known as STIs are acquired mostly by sexual contact and can pass through blood semen or other bodily fluids. Some of them can also be transmitted through birth or during the pregnancy or through the use of needles and unsafe blood transfusions.
Everyone must understand that being sexually active will get them exposed to STIs at some degree and there are certain actions that can even increase this risk. Amongst them:
■ Unprotected sexual intercourse;
■ Contact with multiple partners;
■ History of STDs.
References
1) Murray PR, Rosenthal KS, Pfaller MA. (2013) Medical microbiology (7th ed.) St. Louis, Mo. Mosby
2) Gross G, Tyring SK (2011) Sexually transmitted infections and sexually transmitted diseases. Heidelbergh: Springer Verlag
10 Dec, 2014