Herpes Testing
Is that sore or rash actually genital herpes? Can you tell by just looking? Can a healthcare provider? No! When it comes to diagnosing genital herpes, it takes more than a look.| American Sexual Health Association
Is that sore or rash actually genital herpes? Can you tell by just looking? Can a healthcare provider? No! When it comes to diagnosing genital herpes, it takes more than a look.| American Sexual Health Association
A study revealed that the majority of young people would prefer testing for STIs at home over going to a doctor’s office or clinic.| American Sexual Health Association
Widespread screening for STIs in heterosexual men is deemed “not cost effective.” Should we reconsider?| American Sexual Health Association
A completely at-home PCR test for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomaniasis could allow people to test themselves and get results and treatment within a matter of hours.| American Sexual Health Association
You can get a UTI from sex, but it’s not what you think. Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are not sexually transmitted infections (STIs). They’re not considered contagious. And yet, they can be a result of sex.| American Sexual Health Association
An antibiotic that is important in the fight against syphilis will once again be hard to find, this time because of a voluntary recall by the manufacturer. The post A Drug Recall May Mean a Another Shortage of Syphilis Treatment first appeared on American Sexual Health Association.| American Sexual Health Association
A new study is raising concerns that doxy PEP, a strategy of taking medication to prevent STIs, might already be contributing to the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.| American Sexual Health Association
The FDA has approved lenacapavir as a form of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), offering a new option for HIV prevention requiring only two shots per year. The post FDA Approves New Version of PrEP—Just Two Shots A Year first appeared on American Sexual Health Association.| American Sexual Health Association
Currently, condoms are the only widely available, proven method for reducing transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) during sex. Condoms work. The post All About Condoms first appeared on American Sexual Health Association.| American Sexual Health Association
The results of large-scale study of HPV suggest that one shot of the vaccine may be enough to protect young people from HPV and related issues like cervical cancer.| American Sexual Health Association
ASHA believes that everyone has the right to information and services that will help them be sexually healthy.| American Sexual Health Association
Talking about STIs is still considered taboo and conversations about sexual behavior are often uncomfortable—even in a healthcare setting. Learn ways to communicate without assumptions or judgment.| American Sexual Health Association
A joint investigation by the CDC and the New Mexico Health Department has confirmed that an unlicensed medi-spa is responsible for at least three cases of HIV.| American Sexual Health Association
The USPSTF recently released updated recommendations on Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis for preventing the sexual transmission of HIV. The recommendations add additional medications, including a long-acting injectable.| American Sexual Health Association
Remarkable results in a Phase III PrEP trial with women and adolescent girls in Africa—two injections per year effectively prevented all HIV infection.| American Sexual Health Association
A new meta-analysis of eight published studies found that the risk of sexual transmission of HIV is almost zero in people with low viral loads.| American Sexual Health Association
Life continues after becoming HIV positive. Thanks to new treatments, many people with HIV are living long, healthy lives.| American Sexual Health Association
An exciting new study in Scotland found no cases of invasive cervical cancer in young women who had gotten the HPV vaccine by the time they were 14. The study offers more proof that vaccinating young people early provides the best protection against cervical cancer.| American Sexual Health Association
It's time to celebrate the start of summer! June is filled with national observances to help you start the summer off right. We're here to help make June the start of a #safesexysummer.| American Sexual Health Association
New Report Highlights Missed Opportunities for Congenital Syphilis Prevention Congenital syphilis occurs when a pregnant patient with syphilis passed the infection on to their baby. It can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, and even infant death. Babies born with syphilis can face lifelong medical issues. The good news is that syphilis can be prevented with timely testing| American Sexual Health Association
There is new guidance on pain management for IUD insertion and acknowledgement that providers often underestimate the pain patients feel during their procedures.| American Sexual Health Association
There’s potential good news in gonorrhea prevention as a series of studies suggests that certain meningococcal B (MenB) vaccines can reduce the risk of gonorrhea.| American Sexual Health Association
On a recent episode of Love Island, a cast member sugested that we could blame our current STI epidemic on men who had sex with animals. She pointed to koalas with chlamydia as an example. There’s some truth here, but also a lot of misinformation.| American Sexual Health Association
Anal sex may have once been thought of more taboo than other sexual behaviors, but today we know it’s a perfectly normal way to find sexual pleasure.| American Sexual Health Association
HPV and Relationships The emotional toll of dealing with HPV is often as difficult as the medical aspects and can be more awkward to address. This may be the area where you feel most vulnerable, and the lack of clear counseling messages can make this even more stressful, especially where relationships are concerned.We regularly receive| American Sexual Health Association
There are many myths and misconceptions about genital HPV. We're clearing up some common ones here| American Sexual Health Association
Testing for STIs at home? It's possible, and an increasingly popular option. Read on to better understand how home testing works and what free at-home tests are available in your area.| American Sexual Health Association
An FDA advisory panel voted unanimously last week that Opill, a progestin-only birth control pill, should be available over the counter.| American Sexual Health Association
LARC methods are safe, reliable, and prevent pregnancy for years. For many people they are a great choice, but everyone has personal preferences for what fits in to their lifestyle and health profile.| American Sexual Health Association
A new antibiotic could give health care providers a much-needed new tool in the fight against antibiotic resistant strains of gonorrhea.| American Sexual Health Association
Gonorrhea (also known as “the clap”) is an infection caused by the bacteria Neisseria gonorrhoeae. It is passed on during vaginal, anal, and oral sex (performing or receiving).| American Sexual Health Association
CDC just released the 2023 Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) Surveillance and for the first time in a long time the data is encouraging.| American Sexual Health Association
A clinical trial of a new antibiotic found that it works just as well as a current drug regimen for treating gonorrhea infections. This is important because the bacteria that causes gonorrhea has become resistant to most existing antibiotics.| American Sexual Health Association
The FDA just approved a new, fully at-home test for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis. The tests, which is only for women, will be available without a prescription. Users can collect their own sample and have results in less than 30 minutes.| American Sexual Health Association
The only way to tell you have HIV is get tested. Testing is recommended at least once for everyone, and may be recommended more often for some. Testing can be quick, easy and confidential.| American Sexual Health Association
In the U.S., HPV infections are estimated to cause about 37,300 cases of cancer. The HPV vaccine can prevent over 90% of these cancers from ever developing.| American Sexual Health Association
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 36,500 HPV-associated cancers occur in the U.S each year.| American Sexual Health Association
Though usually harmless, some types of HPV cause cervical lesions that, over a period of time, can develop into cancer if untreated.| American Sexual Health Association
Genital warts are caused by human papillomavirus (HPV). The types of HPV that cause genital warts are usually spread by direct skin-to-skin contact during vaginal, anal, or possibly oral sex with someone who has this infection.| American Sexual Health Association
Anyone who is having penis-in-vagina sex runs the risk of getting pregnant every time they have sex. Even if it’s your first time. Even if you have your period. Even if it’s a full moon and Mercury is in retrograde.| American Sexual Health Association
A new study found that opt-out screenings for all patients in emergency departments caught numerous cases of syphilis and HIV that would have gone undetected under other screening protocols.| American Sexual Health Association
There are over 100 different types of human papillomavirus, or HPV. Some types of HPV can cause genital warts and other types can cause cancer, including cancer of the cervix, vulva, vagina, penis or anus, as well as cancer in the back of the throat.| American Sexual Health Association
Our reproductive health is an important part of our sexual health and our overall health. It includes our reproductive organs and our ability to get pregnant or get someone pregnant when we choose.| American Sexual Health Association
The name says it all. Long-acting reversible contraception, or LARC, is reversible birth control that provides long-lasting (think years) pregnancy prevention. | American Sexual Health Association
Explore ways to make sex safer and communicate with your sexual partners about your expectations and boundaries.| American Sexual Health Association
PrEP stands for pre-exposure prophylaxis. The word prophylaxis means to prevent or control the spread of an infection or disease. The goal of PrEP is to prevent HIV infection from taking hold if you are exposed to the virus.| American Sexual Health Association
Syphilis can be treated more easily if it is caught early. But undiagnosed and untreated syphilis can be dangerous. It can cause irreversible health damage and even death.| American Sexual Health Association
Sexually transmitted infections, or STIs—also called sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs—affect people of all ages, backgrounds, and from all walks of life. In the U.S. alone there are about 20 million new cases of STIs each year.| American Sexual Health Association
According to the Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center, syphilis rates among Native Americans in Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South rose 1,865% from 2020 to 2022.| American Sexual Health Association
Many STIs have no signs or symptoms in the majority of people infected. The only way to know if you have an STI is to get tested.| American Sexual Health Association
HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus. Learn the basics about how HIV prevention, testing, and treatment.| American Sexual Health Association
Chlamydia is a common infection that can be cured with antibiotics, but if left untreated it can lead to complications such as PID and infertility.| American Sexual Health Association
New studies add to our evidence that doxy PEP is working to prevent bacterial STIs among transgender women and men who have sex with men.| American Sexual Health Association
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists released new guidelines recommending that all pregnant people be screened for syphilis three times during pregnancy.| American Sexual Health Association
The World Health Association recently declared a global health emergency amid rising cases of mpox. The current outbreak, which began in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DCR), is caused by a deadlier form of the virus than the one that spread throughout the world in 2022.| American Sexual Health Association
The FDA recently approved an at-home test for syphilis that can provide initial results in just 15-minutes. Syphilis has been surging in recent years with the number of cases rising 80% between 2018 and 2022 alone.| American Sexual Health Association
Finding the Right Healthcare Provider Talking to a healthcare provider about your sexual health can be intimidating. You might feel embarrassed about the questions that you have; you might not want to admit to certain feelings or fears about your health. But being able to talk to your healthcare provider about your physical health as| American Sexual Health Association
Let's talk about safer sex boundaries birth control STI status desires "Imagine going to a restaurant where the chef served you whatever he or she felt like fixing instead of giving you a choice. Imagine a gardener who never asked, 'How do you like your bushes trimmed?' Yet when it comes to sex many of us assume that| American Sexual Health Association
Today there are a lot of experts offering sexual health information and advice on websites and social media, but in the 1980s it seemed like everyone was listening to just one: Dr. Ruth Westheimer.| American Sexual Health Association
You can get STIs from kissing, but most experts would tell you that kissing—even passionate kissing with tongue—is a pretty safe sexual behavior.| American Sexual Health Association
STIs aren’t about age, they’re about sexual behavior. Older people are having sex, and they need to be thinking about sexually transmitted infections.| American Sexual Health Association
Sexual anatomy typically refers to the both the external sexual organs, like the vulva and penis, and the internal organs involved in reproduction, like the uterus and seminal vesicle.| American Sexual Health Association
Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is a serious infection in the upper genital tract/reproductive organs of women and a leading cause of infertility.| American Sexual Health Association
Don’t be shy to talk with your partner about safer sex and condoms: For both of you, this is one of the most important conversations you can have. It’s also one of the smartest!| American Sexual Health Association
New data on STIs from CDC reveals 2.5 million cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis were reported in the US in 2022, with rates of syphilis have up an alarming 80% since 2018.| American Sexual Health Association
