The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that every year there are 19 million new infections of sexually transmitted infections and diseases. This trend causes significant personal burdens to those who are infected, and it costs the U.S. health care system about $17 billion annually.
On April 10 from 6–8 p.m. in Smith Memorial Student Union, room 294, Terri Warren will talk about sexual health and testing in an event called “Let’s Get Personal!” Warren, who has owned the Westover Heights Clinic in Northwest Portland for the last 30 years, is a nurse practitioner and has master’s degrees in nursing and counseling. She is the author of The Updated Herpes Handbook and Tender Talk: A Practical Guide to Intimate Conversations. She has also written several articles on the topic of sexual health and is the online advisor for the WebMD herpes message board.
Warren, who has given talks nationally and internationally about STDs, said that one of the biggest misunderstandings about STDs is that “if you had something, you’d know.” It’s not necessarily true, she said.
Infected individuals often don’t realize that they have an STD. For example, approximately 80 percent of individuals with herpes simply don’t know they are infected. In The Updated Herpes Handbook, Warren writes, “It is now known that 80–90 percent of all first time genital outbreaks are unrecognized.”
There are similar trends for chlamydia, gonorrhea and other STDs. The CDC reports that most people who have chlamydia don’t realize it, even though it is the most commonly reported notifiable (meaning it must be reported to government authorities) STD in the U.S. It is estimated to affect almost 7 percent of sexually active young women 14–19 years old. Gonorrhea, the second most commonly reported notifiable disease in the U.S., is becoming more resistant to antibiotics, further highlighting the need to control its spread.
Symptoms of STDs can stay hidden for years—especially in women—and some of them have serious and permanent health effects, including infertility in both men and women. Having an STD can even make it easier to contract HIV due to irritation in the skin and the increased likelihood of sharing HIV when another STD is present. Many STDs, however, are treatable when caught in the early stages, and all can be prevented.
Because someone who is infected with an STD may not have symptoms or may not recognize their symptoms, getting tested specifically for STDs plays a key role in preventing the spread of STDs.
Warren said there is an extra bonus of getting thoroughly tested: Partners who are in a truly monogamous relationship and who are found to have no STDs at all are free to have “more fun.”
The topic of sexual health can be a difficult one to approach, even for some clinicians. According to Warren, clinicians who don’t specialize in sexual health or female health “can be uncomfortable with the topic of sexuality themselves.” Although patients often expect a direct discussion with their clinician about the spread, symptoms and implications of an STD, they might walk away from an appointment confused or even misinformed due to a lack of direct communication.
Miscommunications between clinicians and patients about sexual health can have serious consequences, but Warren is known in the community for her direct approach and accessible, no-nonsense answers to sensitive questions.
Tyler Lamberts, who organized the April 10 event for Westover Heights Clinic, said that Warren is able to tackle awkward topics in a way that patients appreciate. “She really hits home with a lot of people because she is just very knowledgeable,” Lamberts said.
There will be a forum after Warren’s lecture in which she will answer audience questions. Because audience members might be uncomfortable asking questions about sexual health in a group setting, she intends to hand out cards on which audience members can write anonymous questions.
“Let’s Get Personal!” is sponsored by the Portland Pre-Health Society.