How do women get tested for STIs? How about men?
For women, swabs of cervical secretions taken at the time of a speculum examination can screen for chlamydia and gonorrhea. Trichomonas can be diagnosed by taking a sample of vaginal discharge, mixing it with saline fluid, and looking for the motile organism under the microscope. The (dead) organism can sometimes be detected on a Pap smear. For men, swabs of urethral secretions can detect chlamydia and gonorrhea. “First void” urine can be tested for chlamydia. Genital warts are usually diagnosed by visual examination, by your health care provider. A biopsy can be performed if the diagnosis is uncertain. Herpes lesions are also frequently diagnosed by sight, and by history. A swab of the lesion can culture the virus, and not only confirm the diagnosis but type the virus (type-1 generally causes oral herpes; type-2 is most often responsible for genital lesions). Blood tests for herpes antibodies are not felt to be as accurate. Hepatitis B, C and HIV are diagnosed by blood tests. A repeat
