What’s the difference between a bacterial STD and a viral STD?
There are a bunch of different sexually transmitted infections, and most of them can be separated into two categories: STDs caused by bacteria, and STDs caused by viruses. The main difference between them is that bacterial STDs are curable, and viral STDs are not curable. But it gets a little more complicated than that.
Bacterial STDs include gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, and trichomoniasis (trich). STDs caused by bacteria can be cured with medicine. This means that once the medicine has finished working, the infection is totally gone and you don’t have the STD anymore. But if you don’t get treated, they can lead to health problems (like infertility) in the future. And it’s possible to get a bacterial STD again — that’s why it’s important to get tested for STDs regularly.
Viral STDs include herpes, HPV, and HIV. STDs that are caused by viruses can live in your body forever. That may sound scary, but viral STDs don’t always cause serious health problems. And there are treatments that can help manage your symptoms and prevent the virus from spreading to other people. Some viral STDs can even go away on their own.
Herpes is a super common skin condition that can cause outbreaks of blisters, but it’s not dangerous. Most of the time there are no symptoms, or the symptoms aren’t noticeable, so lots of people don’t even know they have herpes. Herpes outbreaks are no fun, but the first one is the worst. Repeat outbreaks are usually shorter and less painful. Most people with herpes get fewer outbreaks as time goes on, and some stop having them altogether. People who have herpes can take medicine to help prevent outbreaks and avoid spreading the virus to their partners.
HPV is a common virus that has lots of different types, or “strains.” Some strains cause genital warts, which can be annoying but aren’t dangerous. Other strains can lead to certain genital and oral cancers, especially cervical cancer. But regular Pap tests can spot any problems on your cervix before they become cancer, and HPV tests can find the types of HPV that can lead to cancer. The HPV vaccine is also a good way to prevent HPV. Most of the time, HPV goes away on its own and doesn’t cause any health problems.
HIV is a virus that hurts your immune system (your body’s defense against getting sick). When HIV damages your immune system, it’s easier to get really sick from things that normally wouldn’t affect you. Without treatment, HIV can lead to AIDS, which is when other illnesses can easily attack your body. There are medicines that people living with HIV can take to stay healthy, and lots of ways to avoid giving HIV to other people. There’s also a medicine you can take to help prevent HIV, called PrEP.
STDs don’t discriminate. Anybody who has sexual contact with another person can get an STD. That’s why getting tested for STDs regularly if you have sex is important — the sooner you know you have an infection, the sooner you can get treated. The good news is, most STDs are easy to cure or treat. And having safer sex can help prevent STDs.
-Kendall at Planned Parenthood
