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Sexually
Transmitted Diseases > HIV/AIDS & STDs > The
Role of STD Detection and Treatment in HIV Prevention Fact Sheet
The Role of STD Detection and Treatment in HIV Prevention - CDC Fact Sheet
Testing and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) can be an effective tool in preventing the spread of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. An understanding of the relationship between STDs and HIV infection can help in the development of effective HIV prevention programs for persons with high-risk sexual behaviors. Individuals who are infected with STDs are at least two to five times more likely than uninfected individuals to acquire HIV infection if they are exposed to the virus through sexual contact. In addition, if an HIV-infected individual is also infected with another STD, that person is more likely to transmit HIV through sexual contact than other HIV-infected persons (Wasserheit, 1992). There is substantial biological evidence demonstrating that the presence of other STDs increases the likelihood of both transmitting and acquiring HIV.
Evidence from intervention studies indicates that detecting and treating STDs may reduce HIV transmission.
Strong STD prevention, testing, and treatment can play a vital role in comprehensive programs to prevent sexual transmission of HIV. Furthermore, STD trends can offer important insights into where the HIV epidemic may grow, making STD surveillance data helpful in forecasting where HIV rates are likely to increase. Better linkages are needed between HIV and STD prevention efforts nationwide in order to control both epidemics. In the context of persistently high prevalence of STDs in many parts of the United States and with emerging evidence that the U.S. HIV epidemic increasingly is affecting populations with the highest rates of curable STDs, the CDC/HRSA Advisory Committee on HIV/AIDS and STD Prevention (CHAC) recommended the following:
CHAC also notes that early detection and treatment of STDs should be only one component of a comprehensive HIV prevention program, which also must include a range of social, behavioral, and biomedical interventions. Sexually Transmitted Diseases -
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Information Network (NPIN) American Social Health Association (ASHA) References Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 1998. HIV prevention through early detection and treatment of other sexually transmitted diseases - United States. MMWR 47(RR-12):1-24. Fleming DT, Wasserheit JN. 1999. From epidemiological synergy to public health policy and practice: The contribution of other sexually transmitted diseases to sexual transmission of HIV infection. Sexually Transmitted Infections 75:3-17. Wasserheit JN. 1992. Epidemiologic synergy: Interrelationships between human immunodeficiency virus infection and other sexually transmitted diseases. Sexually Transmitted Diseases 9:61-77. Page last modified: April 10, 2008 Page last reviewed: April 10, 2008 Content Source: Division of STD Prevention, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention |
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