Trichomoniasis

Trichomoniasis (often called trich) is a sexually transmitted disease. It is caused by a parasite called Trichomonas vaginalis, which is a protozoa made of just one cell. Trichomoniasis can affect both men and women. It is usually an infection of the urinary system and genitals.

Cause

The Trichomonas vaginalis parasite can only live in the human genital tract. Trichomoniasis is only spread through sex, or if two people's genitals touch.

Signs and symptoms

Most people with trichomoniasis do not have any symptoms.

When people do have symptoms, they usually start about 5 to 28 days after the person got infected. Symptoms may include:

Complications

Complications are serious problems that can happen because a person has a disease. These problems do not happen to everyone with trichomoniasis. They are the most serious problems that trichomoniasis can cause. Some of the most dangerous problems that can happen to a person with trichomoniasis include:

  • People with trichomoniasis are more likely to get (or spread) HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
  • If a woman is pregnant, trichomoniasis can cause her to have a premature infant, or an infant that weighs less than normal.
  • Trichomoniasis may work together with human papillomavirus (HPV) to cause cervical cancer, although this has not been proven.
  • In men, trichomoniasis can cause inflammation (swelling) of the urethra and the prostate. In the prostate, trichomoniasis may create chronic (long-term) inflammation that may eventually cause prostate cancer.

Treatment

Treatment for trichomoniasis is usually metronidazole (Flagyl), which kills protozoa like Trichomonas vaginalis. However, this medication has to be used carefully with woman who are in the early stages of pregnancy. Anyone the infected person has had sex with should also get treatment, even if they have no symptoms.

About 95% to 97% of people with trichomoniasis are cured after one dose of metronidazole.

Without treatment, trichomoniasis can stay in a woman's body for months to years. In many (but not all) men, it seems to go away on its own.

Prevention

Trichomoniasis can be prevented by having safe sex (for example, by using condoms).

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests that women who are having vaginal discharge should get tested for trichomoniasis.

How common is trichomoniasis?

Trichomoniasis is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the world that is not caused by a virus. Every year, about 248 million more people get trichomoniasis. It is more common in women than men.

It is also the most common non-viral sexually transmitted disease in the United States. In the U.S., about 3.7 million people have trichomoniasis, and about 1.1 million more people get infected every year. Recent research has said that 3% of the U.S. population (3 in every 100 people) have trichomoniasis. In people who are at higher risk of getting trichomoniasis, like people with HIV and people in prison, between 7.5% to 32% are infected.

References

  1. ↑ Midlej V., Benchimol M. (2010). "Trichomonas vaginalis kills and eats- evidence for phagocytic activity as a cytopathic effect". Parasitology. 137 (1): 65–76. doi:10.1017/S0031182009991041. PMID 19723359. S2CID 33988014.
  2. ↑ "Trichomoniasis - CDC Fact Sheet". Archived from the original on 19 February 2013. Retrieved 12 January 2011.
  3. ↑ "STD Facts - Trichomoniasis". cdc.gov. 2 December 2021. Archived from the original on 19 February 2013. Retrieved 26 October 2017.
  4. ↑ Trichomoniasis symptoms Archived 2013-02-19 at the Wayback Machine. cdc.gov
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  8. ↑ Caini, Saverio; Gandini, Sara; Dudas, Maria; Bremer, Viviane; Severi, Ettore; Gherasim, Alin (2014). "Sexually transmitted infections and prostate cancer risk: A systematic review and meta-analysis". Cancer Epidemiology. 38 (4): 329–338. doi:10.1016/j.canep.2014.06.002. ISSN 1877-7821. PMID 24986642.
  9. ↑ Stark, Jennifer R.; Judson, Gregory; Alderete, John F.; Mundodi, Vasanthakrishna; Kucknoor, Ashwini S.; Giovannucci, Edward L.; Platz, Elizabeth A.; Sutcliffe, Siobhan; et al. (2009). "Prospective Study of Trichomonas vaginalis Infection and Prostate Cancer Incidence and Mortality: Physicians' Health Study". JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 101 (20): 1406–11. doi:10.1093/jnci/djp306. PMC 2765259. PMID 19741211.
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  15. ↑ Vaginitis/Trichomoniasis :Reduce your risk Archived 2008-03-16 at the Wayback Machine, American Social Health Association. Retrieved March 12, 2008.
  16. ↑ World Health Organization. Prevalence and Incidence of Selected Sexually Transmitted Infections, Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, syphilis and Trichomonas vaginalis: Methods and Results Used by WHO to Generate 2005 Estimates. 2011. Available at: http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2011/9789241502450_eng.pdf Archived 2013-06-13 at the Wayback Machine.
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  19. ↑ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, and TB. Division of STD Prevention. Trichomoniasis - CDC Fact Sheet. 2012.
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  23. ↑ Rogers SM, Turner CF, Hobbs M; et al. (2014). "Epidemiology of undiagnosed trichomoniasis in a probability sample of urban young adults". PLOS ONE. 9 (3) e90548. Bibcode:2014PLoSO...990548R. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0090548. PMC 3953116. PMID 24626058.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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  28. ↑ Munson E, Kramme T, Napierala M, Munson KL, Miller C, Hryciuk JE (2012). "Female epidemiology of transcription-mediated amplification-based Trichomonas vaginalis detection in a metropolitan setting with a high prevalence of sexually transmitted infection". J Clin Microbiol. 50 (12): 3927–31. doi:10.1128/JCM.02078-12. PMC 3503002. PMID 23015673.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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