title: STD prevention: why limit ourselves to just an ounce?
abstract: When Ben Franklin said, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" he was not likely referring to sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Preventing an STD is greatly preferred to treating not just that STD but the ever-expanding circle of STDs which may arise from the index case. STD risk is closely linked to sexual behaviors, making effective prevention quite challenging. But there are more arrows in our prevention quiver than simply telling people to use condoms. Because many STDs are asymptomatic, there is a clear role for screening at-risk populations. Identifying those at-risk populations can only happen when we obtain meaningful sexual histories. Individuals diagnosed with STDs must be treated appropriately, but also treating their partners will limit further transmission. Expedited partner therapy is one approach to treating STD contacts. Vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV) is an under-utilized method of STD prevention. Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a recent development for HIV prevention in some high-risk individuals. Another recent strategy is HIV treatment as prevention, in which we reduce the pool of potential HIV transmitters. Each of these prevention tools is simply another building block to place upon the foundation of the ABCs: Abstinence, Being faithful, and Condom use.
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Shafer
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D056990:Post-Exposure Prophylaxis; D011322:Primary Prevention; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013023:South Dakota / Q000453:epidemiology