Sexually Transmitted Infections PDF

1/9/24, 2:51 AM Realizeit for Student Introduction Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a significant global health challenge. More than 30 different bacteria, viruses, and parasites are known to be transmitted through sexual contact. Eight of these pathogens are linked to the greatest incid...

1/9/24, 2:51 AM Realizeit for Student Introduction Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a significant global health challenge. More than 30 different bacteria, viruses, and parasites are known to be transmitted through sexual contact. Eight of these pathogens are linked to the greatest incidence of sexually transmitted disease. Of these eight infections, four are currently curable: syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and trichomoniasis. The other four are viral infections which are incurable: hepatitis B, herpes simplex virus (HSV or herpes), HIV, and human papillomavirus (HPV). Symptoms or disease due to the incurable viral infections can be reduced or modified through treatment. STIs are bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections of the reproductive tract caused by microorganisms transmitted through vaginal, anal, or oral sexual intercourse. STIs pose a serious threat not only to women’s sexual health, but also to the general health and well-being of millions of people worldwide. STIs are responsible for genital tract infections that may lead to later complications in women such as pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) or infertility. They may also cause chronic liver diseases and cancer due to hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections: genital cancer associated with HPV, and AIDS caused by HIV. STIs constitute an epidemic of tremendous magnitude globally with an estimated 376 million new cases of curable STIs each year (World Health Organization [WHO], 2019d). STIs are biologically sexist, presenting greater risk and causing more complications among women than among men. Women are diagnosed with two thirds of the estimated 20 million new cases of STIs annually in the United States. After only a single exposure, women are twice as likely as men to acquire infections from pathogens causing gonorrhea, chlamydia infection, hepatitis B, HPV, and syphilis (American Sexual Health Association [ASHA], 2019). STIs may contribute to cervical cancer, infertility, ectopic pregnancy, chronic pelvic pain, and death. Sexually transmitted infections and adolescents Individuals aged 15 to 24 years represent almost half of all cases of new STIs acquired (CDC, 2018b). Today, two in five sexually active teen girls have an STI that can cause https://herzing.realizeithome.com/RealizeitApp/Student.aspx?Token=lqf9HhURQ5RqpgqAkzH2zUraqIasLrohurDGqXpGq6QB9gdqiPJLc88OmWKG9Kloy4LbjaH… 1/3 1/9/24, 2:51 AM Realizeit for Student infertility and even death (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Adolescent Health, 2019). Adolescent males make up approximately 80% of HIV diagnosis among 13- to 19-year-olds (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Adolescent Health, 2019). In the United States, teens who are sexually active experience high rates of STIs, and some racial or ethnic minority groups are at higher risk due to social conditions, including youths living in poverty and those with limited educational attainment (CDC, 2020). Biologic, social, and behavioral factors place teenagers at high risk. Female adolescents are more susceptible to STIs due to their anatomy. During adolescence and young adulthood, women’s columnar epithelial cells are especially sensitive to invasion by sexually transmitted organisms, such as chlamydia and gonococci, because they extend out over the vaginal surface of the cervix, where they are unprotected by cervical mucus; these cells recede to a more protected location as women age. Social factors such as poverty, lack of education, social inequality, and limited access to health care services impact the prevalence of STIs in this high-risk population (Alexander et al., 2021). Behaviorally, adolescents and young adults tend to think they are invincible and deny the risks of their behavior. This risky behavior exposes them to STIs and HIV/AIDS. Adolescents frequently have unprotected intercourse, they engage in partnerships of limited duration, and they face many obstacles that prevent them from using the health care system (CDC, 2018c; Healthy People 2030). Nursing Assessment Many health care providers fail to assess adolescent sexual behavior and STI risks, to screen for asymptomatic infection during clinic visits, or to counsel adolescents on STI risk reduction. Nurses need to remember that they play a key role in the detection, prevention, and treatment of STIs in adolescents. All states allow adolescents to give consent to confidential STI testing and treatment. Nursing Management Nurses working with adolescents need to convey their willingness to discuss sexual habits. Provide effective guidance that promotes sexual health so that primary and/or repeat infections can be avoided. Adolescents bear disproportionate burdens when it comes to STIs, so nurses need to educate them to protect their client’s reproductive futures. https://herzing.realizeithome.com/RealizeitApp/Student.aspx?Token=lqf9HhURQ5RqpgqAkzH2zUraqIasLrohurDGqXpGq6QB9gdqiPJLc88OmWKG9Kloy4LbjaH… 2/3 1/9/24, 2:51 AM Realizeit for Student Encourage the client to complete the antibiotic prescription (specific management for each type of STI is discussed further in the module). Prevention of STIs among adolescents is critical. Health care providers have a unique opportunity to provide counseling and education to their clients. Adapt the style, content, and message to the adolescent’s developmental level. Identify risk factors and risk behaviors and guide the adolescent to develop specific individualized actions of prevention. The nurse’s interaction and conversation with the adolescent needs to be direct and nonjudgmental. Encourage adolescents to postpone initiation of sexual intercourse for as long as possible, but if they choose to have sexual intercourse, explain the necessity of using barrier methods, such as male and female condoms. For teens who have already had sexual intercourse, the clinician can encourage abstinence at this point. If adolescents are sexually active, they should be directed to teen clinics where contraceptive options can be explained. In areas where specialized teen clinics are not available, nurses should feel comfortable discussing sexuality, safety, and contraception with teens. Encourage adolescents to minimize their lifetime number of sexual partners, to use barrier methods consistently and correctly, and to be aware of the connection between drug and alcohol use and the incorrect use of barrier methods. https://herzing.realizeithome.com/RealizeitApp/Student.aspx?Token=lqf9HhURQ5RqpgqAkzH2zUraqIasLrohurDGqXpGq6QB9gdqiPJLc88OmWKG9Kloy4LbjaH… 3/3