Today, Uncle Doctor has a story about a disease to share with the ladies, so they can see the world of facts and be prepared without regret and suffering. The story goes like this:
On December 22, 2015, a woman came for prenatal care at a state hospital. Her HIV blood test result was “positive,” but her husband’s result was “negative.” Are you surprised, nieces? This is a matter close to those who have partners or lovers. Should we be more cautious and protect ourselves? This type of blood result is called “serodiscordant couples,” where one partner, lover, or whatever you call them, has a positive HIV result while the other is negative. This discordant result is increasingly common nowadays, occurring in two forms: 1) Woman HIV “positive,” partner HIV “negative” 2) Woman HIV “negative,” but partner HIV “positive.”
Research data by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Phulsuk Jenpanich Wisutthiphan from Mahidol University in 2012 found that 51% of partners of HIV-positive individuals have a negative HIV result. Those who are HIV-positive but unaware of their status can transmit HIV to their partners. Those who are partners and have unprotected sex are also at risk of contracting HIV.
Therefore, it is worth considering whether we should know our own and our partner’s infection status. This way, we can pay attention to preventing infection by regularly using condoms to reduce the chance of contracting HIV.
The method of testing for HIV should be done before marriage or after unprotected sex, if possible, and retested after 3 months. If possible, Uncle Doctor recommends getting a blood test every year if you are at risk and not using condoms, as Thailand had 7,324 new HIV cases in 2014, averaging 22 people per day. Additionally, there is an increase in cases of gonorrhea and syphilis.
This data shows that many people are unaware, unafraid, and have unprotected sex. Most come for an HIV test only when symptoms appear, missing the opportunity for “early detection and early treatment.”
Recently, many people with sexually transmitted disease issues have come to see Uncle Doctor.
Starting with a well-dressed, beautiful 26-year-old woman who is still studying and working. She has had vaginal discharge, slight itching, and occasional lower abdominal pain for 2 weeks. She came with her 48-year-old mother, who encouraged her to get an internal examination. Uncle Doctor informed her that the discharge was due to chlamydia. She was shocked and didn’t expect it. She said she had broken up with her boyfriend because she found out he had another woman. He chose to be with both, but she couldn’t accept it. During their relationship, she responded to his desires and had sex as he wished. He used condoms initially, but often didn’t, saying he didn’t buy any. She went along with it, not insisting he wear a condom, thinking it would be fine as he seemed clean and unlikely to have a disease.
Later, her condom usage behavior improved. She prepared condoms herself, not buying them from 7-11 but from a pharmacy, which seemed more discreet, and ordered them online along with other items. She ordered 2 boxes at a time and preferred thinner condoms, saying they worked better. However, she also mentioned taking birth control pills from the pharmacy without guidance on how to take them, thinking it was once a day, so she took them in the morning. In reality,
birth control pills should be taken in the evening or before bed, checking every morning if you forgot the night before. For a 21-pill pack, take them following the arrows until finished, and menstruation will occur 3-4 days after finishing the pack. Start a new pack on the 5th day of menstruation, or simply put, skip 7 days and start a new pack on the 8th day.
After the examination, she sat outside the examination room. Her mother asked Uncle Doctor, “Does my daughter have any disease?” “I have chlamydia,” the daughter answered first. “How did she get this disease?” the mother asked. “It’s a sexually transmitted disease,” Uncle Doctor replied to the mother because the daughter asked him to explain. The mother sat still, not too shocked, and emphasized that her daughter should get treated and see the doctor as scheduled. Before leaving, Uncle Doctor advised her to be selective in choosing partners and whether to have sex. This young woman has the advantage of having completed 3 doses of the cervical cancer vaccine.
Additionally, Uncle Doctor also consulted with a 23-year-old woman who suspected she had contracted gonorrhea from her boyfriend because they used condoms only 10-20% of the time. Another example is a 24-year-old woman who sought advice after having small warts in the genital area. She went to the hospital, and the doctor diagnosed her with genital warts, treated with topical medication. Her question was whether she was at risk for cervical cancer and what to do next. She said she had her first boyfriend at 18 and had sex occasionally, using condoms about 90% of the time and taking birth control pills because she was very afraid of getting pregnant. Later, she reduced condom use, relying on birth control pills, thinking it was enough, not considering diseases. With her second boyfriend, whom she dated for 4 years, she didn’t use condoms at all, only taking birth control pills, thinking she could trust him, but knowing he had previous partners.
Uncle Doctor wants to say that while sex is natural, we should love ourselves by preventing HIV and other infections. We should be genuinely committed and increase our ability to control our behavior to use condoms every time or 100 percent.
With love and care,
Dr. Ruangkit Sirikanchanakul, RSA Network Coordinator