Herpes, gonorrhea, chlamydia, HIV/AIDS, HPV, hepatitis and syphillis; if you think you’re not susceptible to these Sexually Transmitted Infections, you’re wrong. The Center for Disease Control warns that there are more than 19 million new cases of STIs in the United Sates. They also show that on a college campus, one in every four students has an STI.Scharon Schaefer, the Clinical Director at the Student Health and Counseling Center at UT, believes that while that figure may not be an exaggeration, it is a little high for UT’s student population.“I think if you look at national statistics, STIs are pretty significant across the board — not just for college students, but with all young adults,” Schaefer said.
Alysha Bryant, rooming assistant in Vaughn Center wasn’t surprised by the one in four statistic.
“I would blame it on alcohol. Students drink too much and then do things they would not normally do. Then they wake up and realize what they’ve done and regret it.”
The trouble with knowing a solid statistic for UT is the fact that not all students are screened and diagnosed in the campus’ health center. Schaefer has had experience with different STIs on campus, but the one most prevalent amongst UT students, she said, would be Human Papillomavirus, or HPV, a disease that can lead to cervical cancer.
“We didn’t used to know that HPV caused abnormal pap smears and cervical cancer. All we knew was that we had a lot of abnormal pap smears. Only recently did we learn why,” Schaefer said.
In 2006, the FDA approved a vaccine, Gardasil, to prevent HPV in women ages nine to 26. The vaccine is injected three times over the course of six months. Many doctors, including Schaefer, recommend the vaccine before women become sexually active.
“One of the biggest problems is we find a lot of young women have started the series of Gardasil vaccines, but for whatever reason, don’t finish the series,” Schaefer said.
Gardasil can be purchased in the Wellness Center on campus for $155. It is recommended that every woman who has started the series, but may not have finished it to come in and get the
remaining injections.
Another recommendation to avoid HPV and cervical cancer are regular visits to a gynecologist for pap smears.
“We’re bringing girls in [to the Health and Wellness Center on campus] and having education sessions and discussions with them about whether they need screening more than once a year,” Schaefer said.
Women with the same partner might not need pap smears and screenings every year, but the ones who have sex with different partners might need to have pap smears/STI screenings more often.
Cases of other STIs on campus have been reported, but no other disease has higher numbers with UT students than HPV.
“In my years here, I have never seen syphilis [at the Health Center] but, just because someone doesn’t go to the Health Center, doesn’t mean it’s not here,” Schaefer said.
On campus, cases of gonorrhea have been very infrequent. As far as chlamydia and herpes go, UT is about average with other parts of the country.
When it comes to avoiding STIs, Schaefer simplifies the issue for students. “You can prevent these things by being selective and using condoms every time,” she said. “Prevention is key.”
UT’s Health Center can do testing on HPV with a pap smear test as well as screenings for chlamydia, gonorrhea and herpes.
“There are a lot of students that [get tested because they] want to be cautious, especially if they have just started a new relationship.” Schaefer said. “I think it’s a very responsible thing to do. They have to look at what the risk factors are. The responsible thing to do is to make sure that you don’t have any infection that you might pass on.”
Students should be cautious even if they are not showing symptoms. “You may be carrying something and not have the symptoms — especially chlamydia for men. Only about 25 percent of the time do they have any symptoms,” Schaefer said.
Students can get more information on prevention at the Health and Wellness Center on campus or by visiting the Center for Disease Control website on STIs, http://www.cdc.gov/std/ .
A fascinating discussion is definitely worth comment. There’s
no doubt that that you ought to publish more on this topic, it may not be a taboo matter but generally people do not speak about these
issues. To the next! Cheers!!
We need more tips on Sex education on youth and adult. Or more and more people have to go to STD dating sites like PozGroup.com.
Now I know where to go to research someone before I start dating them. Thanks Gladys!!!
I know I’m beautiful! But don’t hate me because this since I have herpes!!! Also I am an engineer who works for the largest herpes dating and support site MeetHerpes.com. I have to tell you a secret, you can choose not to believe me. But the truth is that this site has more than 1,560,000 members and about 80% members are good looking in my estimation.
Unfortunately, herpes rates soar worldwide and most people with herpes don’t even know that they have them. The government should grant more money for herpes education to lower the rates of herpes transmission.