Sexually Transmitted Diseases.

Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) during pregnancy are serious because they can harm a developing fetus. STDs are contracted during sexual, oral or anal intercourse. If you have an STD, seek treatment as soon as possible!

The incidence of STDs appears to be on the increase. As many as one in five Americans is currently infected with an STD. One out of every 20 adults will contract an STD in the next 12 months.
Sexually transmitted diseases are more common in women than in men. A woman is more susceptible because her reproductive organs are inside her body, a fertile environment for infections to grow. This also makes diagnosis in women more difficult than in men.

Left untreated, STDs can harm an unborn baby. Every year, thousands of babies are born early or suffer from infection because of undetected STDs passed to them by their mothers. Effects include early rupture of membranes, miscarriage, stillbirth and preterm birth. Other serious effects include blindness, mental retardation, neurological problems, brain damage and even death. In some cases, effects are not evident until years after birth.

Some STDs are transmitted when the baby comes in contact with the virus during birth. Others are passed to the baby through the mother's blood and infect the baby during pregnancy or birth.
The most common sexually transmitted diseases include monilial vulvovaginitis, trichomonal vaginitis, condyloma acuminatum (venereal warts), genital herpes simplex infection, chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and HIV / AIDS.

Some sexually transmitted diseases can be diagnosed and cured during pregnancy. Those that can't be cured usually can be treated. It's important to be tested for an STD if you believe you might have been exposed. Discuss this important subject with your doctor.