Final Exam: Reproductive System Infections Flashcards
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs)
Include diverse agents that can be transmitted by sexual contact
Any STI that causes lesions/ulcers or pronounced inflammation lead to increased risk for transmission of HIV or other bloodborne STIs
Urogenital infections
Infections and disorders that may jointly affect the urinary and reproductive systems
Genital herpes: Etiological agent Transmission
Herpes simplex virus 2 (HSV-2)
Unprotected oral sex can transmit HSV-1 to the genital area
Oral sex may transmit HSV-2 from the genitals to the mouth
Genital herpes: Signs, Symptoms and Complications
Causes an initial, severe outbreak of ulcers as quickly as three days after transmission
“Dewdrop on a rose petal” lesions
Causes persistent latent infections
Virus lies dormant in peripheral nerves near the area where lesions had developed
Greater risk for HIV
Genital Herpes: Treatment and Prevention
No cure
Acyclovir (antiviral medication) can shorten outbreaks and suppress flare-ups
Condoms do not provide full protection
Human papilloma viruses (HPVs) : Characteristics
Most common STI in the world
HPVs are so common that almost every sexually active person will be infected with some type of HPV in their lifetime
HPVs: Signs, Symptoms and Complications
Most infections are asymptomatic
Types 6 and 11 are best known for causing genital warts
Types 16 and 18 are cancer causing
HPV causes ~90% of cervical cancers
Increased risk of cancer
HPVs: Treatment and Prevention
Self-resolving infection within 2 years
HPV vaccine
Pap smear screening: Cervical brush removes cervical cells for microscopic evaluation
Chlamydia - Bacterial STI
Gram-negative bacteria
Lives inside eukaryotic cells
Agent: Chlamydia trachomatis
Chlamydia: Biovars
Trachoma: Some serovars target the eyes, Serovars D-K cause urogenital infections
Lymphogranuloma venereum
Trachoma
Blindness from trachoma is irreversible
Infection spreads through personal contact (via hands, clothes or bedding) and by flies that have been in contact with discharge
Chlamydia: Signs and Symptoms
In men: nongonococcal urethritis, dysuria, burning and itching of the penis, testicular swelling or pain, and discharge
In women: bleeding/spotting, dysuria, vaginal discharge with an odor, vaginal itching or burning, painful sexual intercourse, and pelvic pain with fever
Chlamydia: Complications
In men: chronic epididymitis (a highly convoluted duct behind the testis) and infertility
In women: pelvic inflammatory disease (inflammation of the female genital tract), accompanied by fever and lower abdominal pain and perinatal exposure
Chlamydia: Treatment
Relatively easy to cure with antibiotics
azithromycin (Z-PAK)– given as 2 or 4 tablets at once.
doxycycline – given as 2 capsules a day for a week
Gonorrhea: Etiological agent and Characteristics and transmission
Neisseria gonorrhoeae
Sexually transmitted
Gonorrhea: Signs and Symptoms
Most infections are asymptomatic
often asymptomatic in women, infected men tend to develop dysuria and a whitish urethral discharge
Gonorrhea: complication and diagnosis
Pelvic inflammatory disease, Infertility
Indistinguishable from chlamydia based solely on signs and symptoms
all of a patient’s sexual partners must be treated
Gonorrhea: Treatment
Antimicrobial resistant strains are common (To penicillin)
CDC recommends combination therapy of ceftriaxone and azithromycin
Gonorrhea: bonus facts
Perinatal exposure to a mother’s infected cervix can cause neonatal gonococcal infections (include conjunctivitis and sepsis)
Untreated, neonatal infections cause permanent blindness, arthritis, meningitis, or even death
Syphilis: Etiological agent, transmission
Treponema pallidum, Gram-negative spirochete, Very few surface antigens that stimulate an immune response
The infection starts with contact with an infected person’s chancres (sores)
Syphilis: Primary stage
Chancre at infection site
Invade the central nervous system
Subsides in 4–6 weeks
Immune system doesn’t usually kill all the bacteria
Syphilis Secondary stage
Occurs ~3 months after initial infection
Usually involves a rash
Condylomata lata in a subset of patients
Swollen lymph nodes, sore throat, patchy hair loss, fever, muscle aches, or malaise may also occur
Symptoms usually disappear within 3 months
Bacteria enters a latent period that lasts for months to years
Syphilis: Tertiary stage
Causes lesions on the skin and bones, heart damage
known for neurological symptoms:
Insomnia, vertigo, and seizures can be observed 5 to 10 years after infection
Partial paralysis, loss of sensation, memory impairment, and hallucinations can occur decades after infection
Can be fatal
TORCH Agents
pathogens that can be vertically transmitted to a developing fetus
A number of pathogens can cross the placenta and affect the fetus
Can cause: Stillborn baby, Congenital defects, Spontaneous abortion
TORCH Pathogens
Toxoplasma gondii
Other infections: HIV, syphilis, parvovirus B19, listeriosis, varicella-zoster virus, coxsackievirus, enteroviruses, and Zika virus
Rubella virus
Cytomegalovirus
Herpes simplex viruses
Vaginal microbiome in reproductive-age women are dominated by
Lactobacillus genus, produce lactic acid and acts to limit infections by:
Lowering vaginal pH to 3.5–4.5
Limiting certain microbial growth
Vaginal lactobacilli produce bacteriocins
Limiting the growth of competing bacteria
dysbiosis
Increase of vaginal pH
May allow for opportunistic infection
Over-the-counter antifungal creams, ointments or suppositories (with miconazole or clotrimazole) are the most common ways to treat yeast infections.
