Sexually transmitted bacterial infections include the following:
- Syphilis caused by Treponema pallidum
- Chlamydia trachomatis infections including lymphogranuloma venereum
- Gonorrhea caused by Neisseria gonorrhea
- Chancroid caused by Haemophilus ducreyi
These diseases are important for many public health reasons as well as medical laboratory practice.
- STIs are costly to society because they are expensive to treat and even more expensive when untreated
- Sterility, ectopic pregnancy, pelvic inflammatory disease, congenital infection, dementia, and HIV infection are just a few of the sequelae of bacterial STIs
- Human behavior, especially sexual behavior, is very difficult to change or influence, thus prevention is challenging
For these reasons, prompt diagnosis and treatment of STIs are essential for the greater good of everyone.
