Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) spread from person to person during sex (vaginal, oral, or anal). Some STDs (also called sexually transmitted infections, or STIs) are caused by bacteria (a type of germ). It's important to start treating those with antibiotics right away. This helps prevent long-lasting problems and stops STDs from spreading to other people. If you are waiting for test results, they should be back in a few days.

Treatment:

• If the health care provider prescribed antibiotics, take them all exactly as recommended. Don't stop the antibiotics early, even if you no longer have signs of the STD, or the STD could come back.
• Tell sexual partners from the past 2 months to get treatment too, even if they don't have signs of an STD. Sometimes your health care provider can prescribe medicine for your partners too.
• Don't have sex until you and your partners have finished treatment and have no signs of an STD. This is usually at least 1 week after treatment starts.

Follow-up:

• Go for follow-up STD testing as recommended by the health care provider.
• Get all doses of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine (shot). HPV is an STD that can lead to some kinds of cancer and genital warts.

• You can't get or take the prescribed antibiotics.
• You are not getting better after a few days.
• You get better, but then notice signs of an STD (like abnormal discharge, belly pain, pain with sex, or pain when peeing).

• For girls: You have severe belly pain or unusually heavy bleeding from your vagina.
• For guys: You get swelling or pain in your testicles.

What are the signs of an STD? Signs of an STD can include discharge from the vagina or penis, genital sores, pain in the lower belly, pain with sex, or burning or pain when peeing. But someone can have an STD without any signs.

How are STDs diagnosed? To find out if someone has an STD, and which germ is causing it, health care providers might do tests on:

• fluid or discharge from the vagina or cervix in females or the urethra in males
• fluid from sores
• urine (pee)
• blood

How are STDs treated? It depends on which germ caused the infection. Antibiotics can treat STDs caused by bacteria (such as gonorrhea, chlamydia, or syphilis). But antibiotics won't work for STDs caused by a virus.

What happens if an STD is not treated? An STD that's not treated can:

• cause ongoing pain
• lead to trouble getting pregnant and/or problems with pregnancy
• spread to others through sex

Even if people with STDs have no signs, they still need treatment to avoid these problems.

How can I avoid getting another STD? The best way to avoid an STD is not to have sex (vaginal, oral, or anal). If you do have sex, you should:

• Use a condom every time you have sex (vaginal, oral, or anal).
• Have only one partner who has already been tested and does not have an STD. That partner should not have sex with other people.