College is a time of sexual exploration for many students. Regardless of whether they choose to be in long, monogamous relationships or casually date around, being in sexually active relationships puts students at high risk for contracting sexually transmitted diseases.
According to a recent study conducted by the University of North Carolina, one in every two sexually active young Americans will contract an STD by the age of 25.
America's most common STD is the human papilloma virus (HPV), which is the cause of genital warts. According to the Center for Disease Control, men and women in the 20 - 24 age group are at highest risk for HPV infection, especially if they attend college.
The New England Journal of Medicine reported that approximately one in every three female American college students is infected with HPV. There are 30 distinct types of HPV that can infect the genital area, three of which account for 80 percent of cervical cancers.
One of these strains that can cause cervical cancer was tested by Dr. Christine Peterson, director of gynecology at Student Health, during two vaccine trials over the course of the last four years. The trials tested a particular vaccine's effectiveness against HPV infection and related diseases. While Peterson said the research trials concluded that the vaccine was 100 percent effective in preventing HPV, the study was only testing one strain of HPV.
The HPV virus has over one hundred subtypes. Some subtypes do not result in any symptoms while other cause various diseases.
For instance, "all genital warts are caused by HPV, but only some strains of HPV cause genital warts," Peterson said.
According to Peterson, no good HPV test currently exists for men, but she encourages women to get pap smears after being sexually active for three years or after turning 21. She added that women who smoke who have HPV are more likely to have abnormal pap smear results.
A sexually active first-year College student who requested anonymity said she has heard of HPV but knows very little about it. She said she was alarmed to discover that individuals can contract HPV even while using a condom, but said this will not alter her sexual lifestyle. The first year added that she thinks most college students do not worry about STDs.
"We think we are invincible and it cannot happen to us," she said.
A fourth-year student who also requested anonymity recently discovered that one of his ex-girlfriends is infected with HPV.
The fourth year said he felt "tainted and dirty" after receiving the news.
"This will definitely change my sex life in the future because I do not want to risk passing it on to anyone else," he said.
-- H&S editor Whitney Garrison contributed to this article
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