Sexual Health Buzz

My name is Bek, I’m 16 and I have Genital Herpes. I lost my virginity at the age of 15, becoming sexually active is meant to a big journey in one’s life, some girls don’t become sexual active until after marriage, which I reckon is pretty awesome. I always wanted to wait until I was either married or in a serious relationship except I was unsure because I had never had a boyfriend before. I was ugly as a young girl; I was always the girl that the boys made fun of. Well because of that from year seven onwards I became aware of the appearance, I started to dye my hair, wearing tons of make up, eating healthy and exercising.

I’m currently in year ten; I have heaps of lovely and caring friends but only my closest friends are aware of that I have genital herpes. Losing my virginity was a life changing experience and a half. To fully understand the importance of the love that your friends have for you, you need to experience something that is unexpected and unwanted.

I was raised in a single mum household, my mum is tight when it comes to guys, and she has never said that I can not have a boyfriend but she gets weird when I mention anything about my friends that are guys. So guys and sex talk in my household does not happen. His name was Brad; his family’s holiday place is next to my family’s holiday place. It was the Christmas holidays 2008-2009, Brad was 20 and ok I recognize he was not the best looking guy in the world, but he was the first guy to look at me as a girl and not one of the boys. We became friends with benefits, then a few days after he asked me out. Brad was the first guy to ever say those words “will you go out with me”; he made me feel special and a guy who actually liked me.

Before Brad’s and my relationship became sexual, I was a virgin, never been fingered, given or received oral sex actually never had seen a real penis. It was a learning experience. I’m one of them exercise freaks, I wont have a good day unless I get at less one hour worth of exercise a day. Well ten months ago this was still the case; I would get up at 5 am and go for a jog along the beach which I have done for years, while me and Brad were together he would come with me. My jogs are the only times that I am alone from my sisters and mum. We would jog to make out couch which was an old couch which was dumped on a headland; it was so beautiful the outlook over the ocean.

Being a virgin meant new experience, the first time I performed oral sex on brad I throw up all over him, he told me it was normal not to enjoy performing oral sex for the first time. It is just it tasted and smelt so terrible. Brad was a lot older than me (five years) and he had been sexually active for years before me.

On the 26th January 2009 (Australian Day) at 5.30am Brad and I had sex after 5 days of going out with him. I didn’t really enjoy it, it kind of hurt, and it was not what I expected, and I thought it would be like what it is like on TV like screaming orgasms. While we were having sex he kept asking me “Bek are you sure you wanna do this?” “Do you want me to stop?” I thought he was being caring and loving but the reality was he was just trying to make sure that I was conceding to having sex with him. A few days previous he had told me about his last girlfriend she was the same age as me, the reason for them breaking up was because she got pregnant and her parents found out she was sleeping with a 20 year old, she was scared to face up to what she had done so she cried rape.

It was understandable why brad made me say any times had with him I was conceding to the sexual activities. But I wonder did he rape, this guy I barely know, and what I did know he displayed this kind of faulty play dishonest nature and a pushy feeling, looking back on this event I believe brad has it in him to forces a girl to perform sexual activities, well he did pressured and pressured into the sexual activities until I had gave in.

Anyways after we had sex, we got dressed, and as he pulled out his little note book as he said “thanks for the root”, I gave him a funny look along with a fake smile and said “what you doing”, as he reply my gut felt to ground as he said “just marking off another tally” that little note book was his tallies of how many girls he had rooted, he gives a rating out of 10 and a smiley face if he would re-root them or a sad face if he would not. I ask him if all I was another mark on his tally, he said “of course not I love you Bek”. Yeah for same reason I didn’t believe him.

Two weeks later I realize that something was wrong, my vagina was really itchy, and then the painful blisters came. I could not do any thing I was in so much pain. I had heard that some girls have an allergic reaction from the natural rubber latex and at first I thought that was what was wrong, I told me best friend that something was wrong, we started to look through a book called “Girl stuff – your full on guide to the teen years” by Kaz Cooke. In the STIs section as we read over every single type of sexually transmitted infections as soon as I started to read the info about Genital Herpes I knew it had it.

The day after I rang Brad, he claimed that I already had the virus and that I have passed it on to him. I know for a fact I didn’t have it before because I had never been sexually active before him. Then he did admit that yes he DID have herpes umm shows his inelegance level because herpes can not be cure nor is there a vaccine to prevent the virus. I went to the doctors and he conform that brad had infected me with herpes.

It has been ten months since I had caught the virus. I still have not have had another boyfriend but that is by choice I feel I have not found the right guy yet. But I have had sex with other guys but I always make sure it is safe and that they have been tested for any STIs. (see note below) The last ten months have been hell, the 26th of each month is torture I break down and seriously feel like I will be nothing but the girl with herpes. People have asked me if I could take it back would I? Truthfully I would not want to take back this big mistake that is because I have grown up so much; I believe that I will able to encourage other girls to love themselves and never do something that they do not want to do.

I use sex to make me feel better about myself, I still don’t enjoy sex, it feels good but I have not found that special guy who will make sex amazing. I believe sex is a personal choice; some girls may want to experience losing their virginity earlier than others. I have a low sense of self I use sex to make my self-esteem elevated. Every guy had I have had sex with I have regretted.

I do not tell people that I have the virus ‘Genital Herpes’. (see note below) At first when I first got infected with this STI, I thought it was no big deal I will go the doctors get the tablets and everything would be fixed. Well herpes is not easily fixed; herpes is a virus that if you catch you carry it with you for the rest of your life. I am one of those girls who can’t wait to be a mum. And having genital herpes I can not give birth naturally, so when I am older and i am pregnant I have to tell my doctor that I have herpes to avoid passing the virus on to my baby.

The mistakes that I have made I am going to carry with me for the rest of my life. I hope I will found that special guy who will love me even though I have a sexually transmitted virus. Herpes is very, very common, one in eight people have the virus and one in seven girls have it. So any body that does have any STIs should not be ashamed. I was ashamed, I thought because I have a STI I am a slut, but the truth is that anybody can catch a STI, I was unlucky and caught Herpes my first time. Do not make the same mistake, make sure you are safe and do not get pressured into having sex.

Hi. This story was sent in by a gal from Australia that wanted me to share her story with you. If you  have a story that you would like me to share you are welcome to contact me.

I just wanted to let those reading know that if you have genital herpes you can still have a healthy baby without having a C-section. Having herpes doesn’t automatically mean you will have to have a C-section. You can have a vaginal delivery and the baby can be safe. You just have to know your status and talk to your doctor about it by the time you find out that you are pregnant. Thanks!

I just wanted to add to this post that it is NOT ok to have sex w/somebody w/out telling them that you have the virus. You do have a moral obligation to sit down with them and have a talk about what it is that you have BEFORE you  have sex. Condoms are NOT 100% effective at preventing STDS. They have a right to listen to what you have to say. Be prepared to answer questions if they have any and remember it’s not just about YOUR situation. You should insist that they be tested too. In the end it’s either going to work itself out relationally or not. Remember, having herpes does not define who you are and it’s not the end of your sex life. Always be honest with your partners!

A girl’s attempt to gain U.S. citizenship may be derailed by refusal to have the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. Simone Davis, a 17-year-old girl born in Britain, seeks to become a U.S. citizen but is confronted by immigration laws mandating that she receive the HPV vaccine that protects against the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus commonly attributed to cervical cancer.

This vaccine requirement stems from the 1996 Immigration and Nationality Act, which mandates that prior to being granted permanent resident status, immigrants must receive all vaccines recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). In 2008, however, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated the list of vaccines required of immigrants to include HPV, a move criticized by a number of advocacy groups who say the mandate places undue burden on those seeking to enter the U.S., and in particular, to women and girls.

Some organizations and advocate groups that focus on immigrant rights and women’s health have questioned the necessity of forcing individuals to receive the vaccine considering that HPV isn’t communicable in public settings. Of the 14 required vaccines, 13 of which aim to prevent infectious diseases considered highly contagious, Gardasil alone targets a sexually transmissible virus. Another worry is that cost may pose unfair financial burden placed on women, possibly acting as a significant financial barrier to seeking citizenship (the vaccine costs $360, plus clinic fees).

Simone protests the HPV vaccine for several reasons; her story reported by abcnews.com. As a devout Christian, Simone has taken a virginity pledge and doesn’t understand she why she should be required to take the vaccine when she doesn’t believe herself to be at risk. Her guardian and paternal grandmother, whom Simone calls “Nanny,” was also upset by this mandate and filed a waiver to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on moral and religious grounds but was rejected. Now facing the possibility of being separated from her Nanny, with only 30 days to appeal the decision before she must reapply as an adult (which requires a five year wait to become eligible for citizenship), Simone questions why none of her American classmates were required to take the HPV vaccine. Simone’s Nanny claims the issue is not simply about religion, and instead highlights their desire to have the same rights of any U.S. citizen.

Deborah Arrindell, ASHA’s vice-president of health policy, says “This vaccine has enormous potential to protect women’s health, no one’s debating that. What’s troubling is the requirement extends only to immigrants, and doesn’t apply to U.S. citizens. One has to question just how much public health is advanced by requiring the vaccine for a such a narrow segment of the population.” Jon Abramson, chairman of the CDC’s Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices when the body recommended the vaccine for U.S. citizens last year, further purports that this policy is “not a good idea.”

There are some indications, however, that the HPV vaccine requirement may be reconsidered. Within the month CDC is expected to release new criteria to determine which vaccines should be mandated for U.S. immigrants. Whether this new criteria will affect Simone Davis’ situation, or the lives of other female immigrants, has yet to seen.

HPV and Cervical Cancer Prevention, HPV Vaccines

More HPV Information

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Experimental HIV Vaccine Prevents Infection in Nearly 1/3 of Subjects

Researchers optimistic, but questions remain

On Thursday, September 24, 2009, The Surgeon General of the U.S. Army released results from the Thai Phase III HIV vaccine study that demonstrated modest results in preventing HIV infection among participants in the clinical trial. The study found the vaccine regimen to be safe and 31 percent effective in preventing HIV infection.

The potential breakthrough comes after several failed vaccine trials; many scientists believed an HIV vaccine might not be possible. For the first time, however, the Thai Phase III study used the combination of two vaccines, Sanofi Pasteur’s ALVAC vaccine and the AIDSVAX B/E vaccine, developed by Vaxgen Inc. and licensed to the nonprofit Global Solutions for Infectious Diseases (GSID) in 2008. The research was sponsored jointly by the U.S. Army and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), along with Sanofi Pasteur and GSID.

The study, conducted in two Thai provinces, began in October 2003 and involved approximately 16,402 HIV-negative subjects ages 18-30 at various levels of risk for HIV infection. Trial participants were evenly divided into groups and received either the vaccine or placebo upon enrollment in the study and again after 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months. Participants were counseled on HIV risk reduction strategies and tested for the virus twice a year for three years. Among the 8,197 subjects who received the combination of vaccines, 51 contracted HIV during the study. This compares to 74 of the 8,198 participants in the placebo group who became infected with the virus. Those who became HIV-positive during the study have been offered treatment at no cost.

In a press release, Anthony S Fauci, M.D. and Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, acknowledges these new findings as “an important step forward in HIV vaccine research,” but cautions that “additional research is needed to better understand how this vaccine regimen reduced the risk of HIV infection.”

The United Nations Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS estimates that 7,000 people worldwide are newly infected with HIV everyday; 2 million people died of AIDS in 2007. There is much to consider regarding future HIV vaccine research. Yet, after more than two decades, the search for a safe, effective vaccine that protects against HIV infection has made an encouraging advance.

HIV AND AIDS Questions & Answers

More HIV Information

You can also talk about HIV here

Seeing many people out there suffering & staying positive, it inspired me to write my tragic story so that others who are the victim may get inspired too. I say tragic because the emotional pain I went through is much more painful than the virus.

I got married 6 yrs ago. I noticed blisters type in the private part during my pregnancy. Doc said it is herpes without any testing. I refused to believe and lived in denial for a year.

It got worse and at the same time my marriage breaking up due to so many silly reasons. Naive as I am, I initially thought that it was just a kind of irritation that women get especially during period. But when my loving hubby who promised me moon before the marriage stopped sleeping with me, I realized it is something serious and I got it tested but from wrong doctors again (gyn).

After several visits to doctors & testings, I could got it right. Like any other infected person, I got shocked, ashamed and even angry at myself. The worse part is that I dont know how I got it & when exactly. I started my medication & by taking care of myself, the outbreaks became lessor except for small irritation once in a while which do not worry me much. I’m basically a woman who dont get frighten easily by anything.

What I want to point out here is that my hubby started fighting with me for all wrong reasons and even stopped sleeping with me. To make it worse he throw accusation on my face every time we argue that he got it from me. But what I dont understand is that he is the first one who showed me the red spot on his penis.

I honestly dont know who contracted whom but I dont care even if I got it from him. I only want a cure if there is any and if there is no cure than remedies.

I would still love him even if I got from him but unfortunately he seems to stopped loving me. He has even started cheating on me. We have not sleep together for the past five years and he even refuse to talk to me. Now we are like a total strangers even at home. No one can imagine the emotional turmoil and mental harassment I gone through, in these past five years. The only beautiful thing that happened to me in these hard period of my life is my beautiful son. He brightens my life and keep me going. I feel suicidal at times not because of herpes virus because my hubby refuse to even touch me because of the disease (as though he is not having).

I am a christian and as a strong believer I ask God to make me strong and give me energy & also tolerance to bear it all.

His rudeness, his accusations, his unfaithfulness & my mental tension due to the virus is driving me crazy. But God is great! He gives me strength to bear and motivates me too.

Today my marriage on the verge of break up & I have even told my husband to leave me if he so scared of the disease because I know without making love, there will be hardly any compassion or care for each other. I also know he will cheat me again if we keep going like this which I cannot tolerate any more.

As for me, I want to live life as any normal person and not bogged down by getting guilty because of disease nor do I like any one reminding me. yeah! He let me feel guilty by not sleeping with me and making me feel dirty at my self. But in reality I feel it is not something you have to worry so much about.

I would rather say am happy because it is not AIDS/HIV or cancer. I am also happy because through this emotional & physical pain I have become closer to God and today I can proudly say that God is with me and he inspires me in everything I do. If its God’s will he will even heal me one day for good.

Lastly I would like to thank all of you out there for inspiring me with your stories.

God bless.

Love rose

Dear Friend,

It is now clear that Congress and the president’s top priority for 2009 is health care reform.  Since the collapse of Hillary-Care in 1994, Democrats have been working to re-plan and re-package a government takeover of your health insurance.

This year, they’re hoping to get their chance.  Last month, Senator Ted Kennedy offered a glimpse of what they have in mind when called for the creation an optional, “public health insurance plan, where coverage is provided in the public interest.”

That may sound nice, but in one sentence, it describes everything that is wrong with a government take-over of American health care.

Health care, by definition, can’t be provided in the public interest because no doctor has ever seen “the public.”  Doctors see patients: one at a time, providing personal care in the patient’s interest only.

Now, if you listen to the ongoing debate about health care reform, you hear a common theme, especially from those who favor a government take-over.

They talk a lot more about costs than they do about care.  Only here’s the thing: the government is the reason that costs are spiraling out of control now.  Government now covers 100 million Americans, and costs are exploding.  Under the proposed takeover, 130 million more will be added to government health programs.  How can they expect to get costs under control by doubling the government’s role in health care?

The answer is by rationing care.  If government wants to cover 230 million Americans and bring down costs, the only way it can possibly do it is denying care to people whose health care is deemed – you guessed it – not in the public interest.

Under similar schemes in Canada and Great Britain, people wait weeks to see their doctors, months to see specialists, and years to get routine procedures and treatments.  High-tech tests and breakthrough medicines are off-limits because the government decides – in the public interest – that they are too expensive.

When the late actress Natasha Richardson suffered her skiing accident in Canada this spring, the hospital didn’t have an MRI machine.  The doctors never knew her injuries were life-threatening… until it was too late.

That’s how a government take-over of your health care will try to get costs under control: cheap, outdated treatments, long waiting lists, and low-tech hospitals.  It won’t take long before families realize the true costs of such a plan aren’t counted in dollars and sense.

Instead of the government-controlled “public option,” we should move toward a “personal option,” where we help individuals and families buy and own their own health insurance plan that no government can ever take-over or take away.

Health care is personal and private.  It should be administered by doctors and nurses in their patient’s interest, not the interests of politicians and bureaucrats in Washington.

Because never forget: any law that empowers government to provide health care in the public interest implicitly empowers government to deny it for the same reason.

I plan to play a big part in the health care debate this summer, and my website will be a clearinghouse for information about the issue as it develops.  Feel free to check in often, as new content will be added every week.  And to help you stay informed, I’ll be in touch frequently as the health care and other debates move forward.

Thanks very much, and God bless.

Jim DeMint
U.S. Senator, South Carolina

“Hello. We’re from ASHA and are here to pee in a cup. Is now a good time?”

Earlier this month, as ASHA launched our STI Awareness Month activities, I wrote a short letter that cheekily called on more people to “pee in a cup” (primarily to test for chlamydia). I wanted to point out that – along with lack of health insurance – social barriers (like stigma and lack of awareness) keep many individuals from seeking the sexual health care they need.

Every day ASHA interacts with thousands of people seeking information and support around issues of sexual health. We’ve urged countless individuals to take the initiative and talk with their health care providers about sexual health. This isn’t easy and, for many patients and providers, can be downright embarrassing. We gently acknowledge all this when chatting with our clients, but our message remains the same: Anyone can be at risk for STIs. Be smart. Have the conversation. Get tested.

Great advice. And I’ve never followed any of it.

I know better but have never felt the personal need to have the same conversation with my health care provider – or most of the tests – that we routinely urge for others. What do my staff and I really know of the anxiety provoked by “peeing in a cup” if we’ve never done it? It was time to try it out for ourselves.

With my inner iPod seemingly stuck on a lecture entitled “what’s good for the goose…,” one of my ASHA senior staff members and I headed to a clinic where we each peed in a cup and gave up a little blood. Then we waited for our test results for chlamydia, HIV, syphilis, hepatitis B and C, gonorrhea, and herpes simplex virus 1 and 2.

Here we were, two seasoned professionals who work in the field of sexual health every day, and the idea of getting tested was not without a bit of nervous giggling. What would the clinic staff think, having us tested for eight different infections? Would they silently (or perhaps not so silently) judge us? Also, STIs can be silent for months or years, and a person with either infection can be unaware for many years, potentially even decades … What if? What if?

Soon, our test results were available. The wait almost unhinged my ASHA buddy – a veteran who’s been in the field 12 years and has more than a clue about STIs and his relative risk – who both compulsively checked the site to see if his results were back and declared he was throwing away his PIN because he’d rather not know.

We did this to better understand what it’s like for those who follow our recommendations to get tested for STIs, and the process certainly educated us. As unnerving as testing can be even for people well versed in this area, this experience drove home how difficult it might be for someone who isn’t as savvy. ASHA and others working in public health put so much energy into providing resources for those diagnosed with STIs, and that’s a good thing. But it’s important not to ignore the “front end” piece of preparing people to get tested in the first place.

I did it. I peed in a cup! Have you? Stay healthy!

Sincerely,

Lynn B. Barclay
President and CEO
American Social Health Association (ASHA)

In recognition of STD Awareness Month in April, ASHA is offering 10% OFF all products in our catalog, all month long! Want to order in advance? Just enter coupon code STDA0309 at checkout to get 10% off orders placed in March.

All health education materials are NOT the same! See our full line of affordable, high quality and award-winning publications at www.ashastd.org.

While ASHA no longer distributes a print catalog, you can download a printable version of our product catalog at our online store.

Think STDs aren’t your issue? Think again. If you have had sex, or plan to, you could get an STD. You owe it to yourself and others to contact your Senator now.

The Senate will begin debate this week on the Economic Recovery Bill, which includes $400 million in funding for HIV and STD screening and prevention.

As the debate swirls around the stimulus package it is imperative that the final package keep the $400 million that will be sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and then on to the states with the highest levels of HIV and STDs. States are in desperate need of resources for their public health programs.

19 million. Number of new cases of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in the U.S. each year (no, that’s not a typo). 15 billion. Cost in dollars each year to treat the 19 million new cases of STDs.

This epidemic is getting worse. The poor, especially in communities of color, are being ravaged by these infections:

1.) The rate of new HIV infections among African American women is 15 times higher than that of white women. African-Americans are only 13% of the population yet account for more than half of all HIV cases.

2.) According to figures from CDC, from 2002 to 2006, chlamydia rates increased by 17.2% among African Americans; 23.7% among American Indian/Alaska Natives; 12.7% among Hispanics.

Years of neglect. The politics of the last eight years have left our nation’s STD prevention programs in sad shape, a fact made only worse by the current economic crisis.

The news is not all bleak, though, as the economic stimulus package currently before the U.S. Senate gives us a rare opportunity to repair our STD prevention and treatment infrastructure AND help the economy at the same time.

In the package, $400 million dollars is marked to go directly to HIV/AIDS and STD screening and prevention. Most of the funds marked would be used to retain and hire thousands of health workers, so public health and local economies are served by keeping more nurses, lab technicians, and support staff working, paying taxes, and off of unemployment rolls.

Please, take five minutes today to get in touch with your state’s Senators. Call or e-mail today (or, if you’re as annoyed by all this as I am, you’ll do both!). Click here to find out how to contact your Senators, or call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121. Consider mentioning these talking points:

I oppose any amendments that would remove any funding for HIV/AIDS and STD prevention.

Because:

1.) The STD burden in the U.S. is the highest in the industrialized world and we have no excuse for it.

2.) These funds will pay for themselves many times over by reducing the number of costly STDs that must be treated every year.

3.) This is a necessary step to protect the health of all Americans, especially vulnerable populations such as young people and the poor.

4.) Finally, this is a one-time investment that is an effective way to create thousands of jobs.

Please, contact your Senators today. We must not miss this chance to do not only the right thing, but also the smart thing for America and our economy. Change starts with action. Above all, change starts with you! Please act now.

Warmly and with great respect,

Lynn Barclay
ASHA President our CEO
LynnBarclay@ASHAstd.org
ASHASTD.org

I used to feel the same way, as did probably, everyone else on here.

The thing that helped me was reading different stories on Angela’s website. (www.yoshi2me.com) Also joining this forum and reading what other people are going through or have gone through, helped a great deal as well.

I was diagnosed in July and was horrified. Went through every stage from denial to suicidal thoughts. But when I came across this forum and Angela’s website, it made me realize this is nothing to be ashamed of and I’m not the only one. You HAVE herpes but you ARE NOT herpes, you can live a normal life with a spouse and children, herpes doesn’t kill you or anyone else, you are not alone! 1 in 5 people have it and 90% don’t even know they have it.

And just because you have herpes, doesn’t mean you’re skanky, dirty, etc. EVERYONE is at risk for an STD. You can sleep with 50 people, or just 1. All it takes is that ONE time for you to catch anything. And if anyone tells you different, well, that’s what your middle finger is for and that’s why you have two ;]

Kudos to Angela and everyone on here. Y’all helped me more than you know and I’m very grateful for that! And thanks to y’all, I now feel that herpes is just a blessing in disguise =]

See what others are saying

It’s so nice and refreshing when somebody writes in with something positive to say about the work that we are doing. Thank you from the bottom of my heart because when times are tough and people are mean it’s a beacon of light at the end of the tunnel and makes it worth it to keep going, even if it means helping only one person at a time. So thank you so much for all of your support, positive energy and good vibes. – Angela aka Yoshi2me

Recent results of a Phase III clinical trial involving Gardasil, a vaccine against four strains of human papillomavirus (HPV), indicate that the vaccine may help prevent genital warts in boys and men. Results of the study, funded by Merck, the manufacturer of Gardasil, were presented earlier this month at the annual meeting of the European Research Organization on Genital Infection and Neoplasia (EUROGIN).

Currently in the U.S., Gardasil is only approved for use in for girls and women aged 9-26. Yet while the vaccine provides protection against two strains of HPV associated with 70 percent of cervical cancer in females, it also protects against strains of HPV that cause genital warts that HPV Newseffect both males and females. The study evaluated approximately 4000 males between 16 through 23 years of age. Study participants received either three doses of Gardasil at regular intervals or a placebo. All participants were followed for 36 months. At the time of vaccination, participants had no evidence of genital lesions, no history of genital warts and five or fewer lifetime sexual partners.

Participants who were vaccinated with Gardasil were approximately 90 percent less likely to develop genital warts than those that received a placebo. No study participants experienced any serious side effects related to vaccination. Merck intends to submit a supplemental Biologics License Application for Gardasil to the FDA by the end of 2008 for the use of the vaccine in boys and men ages 9 to 26 for the prevention of genital warts.

ASHA’s fact sheet on HPV vaccines addresses some of the most common questions about Gardasil and other vaccines in development. ASHA’s website also offers recent data on the safety of Gardasil.

Talk about HPV