5 Signs You Might Have an STI

The world got a crash course on transmitting viral infections a few years back with the global pandemic, yet we haven’t carried over this newfound know-how into sexually transmitted infections (STIs), which are still alarmingly high in the United States.  

For example, between 2020 and 2021, there were 2.5 million new cases of chlamydia, syphilis, and gonorrhea in the United States. More alarming is the fact that young Americans between the ages of 15 and 24 account for 53% of the infections in 2020, and this trend continues.

To help you stay one step ahead of a sexually transmitted infection, it’s important that you recognize the signs of the problem. Letting an infection go unchecked and untreated can lead to serious issues, such as infertility, so you need to recognize when you should seek our help.

To that end, the team of board-certified OB/GYNs here at Bay Area Physicians for Women’s Health pulled together a few red flags when it comes to sexually transmitted infections.

A quick word about sexually transmitted infections

There are many different types of STIs, but for the purposes of this discussion, we’re going to focus on the more common among women, which include:

• Gonorrhea
• Human papillomavirus (HPV)
• Syphilis
• Chlamydia
• Genital herpes

The reason why we’ve moved away from calling them sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) to STIs is that the term infection is more accurate — you can be infected but not necessarily develop disease.

Signs of a sexually transmitted infection in women

As we just reviewed, you can be infected and not show any signs of disease, so many women who have an STI don’t have any symptoms, which is why we recommend routine STI testing. Just because you aren’t symptomatic doesn’t mean that the infection isn’t a problem — you can still pass along the infection (even to an unborn child), and a dormant infection can still rear its ugly head down the road.

When women do develop symptoms from an STI, they typically include:

1. Vaginal itching

This is a common sign of an STI, in both men and women. With women, the itchiness is usually around the genitals.

2. Changes in urination

Women often experience painful urination (a burning sensation) when they have an STI, as well as a tendency to urinate more often.

3. Genital warts

If you develop bumps around your vagina that you can see or feel, these may be genital warts, which are the result of an HPV infection.

4. Pelvic pain

If your STI goes untreated, it can turn the corner into pelvic inflammatory disease, which can lead to pelvic pain. This pain can flare during certain activities, such as having intercourse.

5. Vaginal discharge

When you have an STI, abnormal vaginal discharge is quite common as it’s a sign that your body is fighting an infection.

These are the early signs of an infection, and we should mention some of the longer-term complications that can occur if an STI goes untreated — namely problems with fertility and, even more serious, a higher risk of certain reproductive cancers.

So, if you're experiencing any of the symptoms we describe above, a quick visit to our office can inform us as to whether you have an STI. If you do, the good news is that a quick course of antibiotics is usually all it takes to clear the infection.

We also highly recommend regular screening for STIs, and we’re happy to come up with the best screening schedule for your goals and lifestyle.

To protect yourself against STIs, please contact our office in Mobile, Alabama, to schedule an appointment.