Essay Example - Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Older Adults

Introduction

Sexually transmitted diseases are among the most infectious diseases in the world. It may be surprising to many, but in aged people, STDs are rising rapidly. Older people who are active sexually may be at risk for contracting diseases like gonorrhea, genital herpes, hepatitis B syphilis, and trichomoniasis, among other sexual diseases. Almost everybody active sexually should take precautions not to be infected by HIV. In the US, adults over the age of 50 have the highest population of people infected with HIV. Sexually transmitted diseases can affect anyone. Therefore, it is important for both adults and their caregivers to know the risks of STDs. This paper talks about the factors contributing to the high STD rate among adults and the possible solutions.

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Factors

Sexual networks.

The United States experiences a high rate of mid-life divorce. Hence, they have moved to social media, where they get dates, and this lowers the chances of knowing the person they are dating, sexual history, and general background (Johnson, 2013). This act places them at a very high risk of being infected by STDs because they have little knowledge about their partners.

Sex education.

Several adults may not have received safety measures during sex when they were young (Johnson, 2013). STD prevention education and safe sex became of importance when HIV AIDS was discovered in the 1980s. At this time, many of the current adults were married, and they were not allowed to receive sex education with young adults. Therefore, older adults do not know the health advantages of engrossing safe sex even with no pregnancy interest, simply because they did not receive proper education at a young age.

Regular screening.

Lack of Regular screening can lead to a problem going unnoticed for a long time. Older adults may be ignorant of going to the screening because they believe it to be safe from STDs, and it only gets to the active generation (Johnson, 2013). But this is not the case. Anybody at any age is bound to be infected with STDs. Therefore, regular screening will help identify the problem earlier and receive medication before it gets to uncontrollable stages.

Sexuality and secrecy.

Most of the older adults become embarrassed to ask the doctor to test them for STDs.Due to this, they are likely not to be diagnosed with STDs at early stages, and they do not receive medication when the situation is still maintainable. Since most STDs do not show signs, older adults get to know that they are infected when the condition is out of hand.

Solutions

It is regular screening for older adults to go for frequent screening to maintain their health status. The sexually active adult can be infected with any sexual disease, and without their knowledge, they continue with life as usual. But if one goes to screening and the condition ever discovered, then there is a possibility to curb the situation at the early stages.

As important as education is, sexual education is also of great importance. Therefore educating older adults on safety measures during sex would have prevented many adults from sexual infections. Even the caregivers of older adults should also be given the same education to pass on the same knowledge.

Sexually transmitted diseases have affected many people in the United States. Measures to prevent these diseases should be put into action to ensure the safety of the people. Although most of these diseases are curable, some are deadly. Caring for older people should be the concern of all the stakeholders involved.

Reference

Johnson, B. K. (2013). Sexually transmitted infections and older adults. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 39(11), 53-60.