It is not customary to speak out loud about sexually transmitted diseases. Nevertheless, it is STDs that are perhaps the most common diseases on the planet. The complications of untreated genital infections can be unpredictable. When it comes to offspring, the consequences of sexually transmitted diseases are extremely disappointing and very deplorable.
Suffice it to say that for men, an STD can turn into sexual impotence or complete infertility, and for a woman, even in the case of a successful conception, there is a high risk of miscarriage , the development of severe fetal pathologies, premature birth, etc. It is not surprising that it is for women the question of the consequences of a particular sexual infection for the unborn child is so acute.
Gonorrhea and pregnancy
As you know, the protective functions of a woman’s body during pregnancy weaken. Therefore, it becomes much more difficult for him to fight all kinds of infections, including sexually transmitted infections. In such “favorable” conditions, pathogenic viruses are activated, the disease progresses at an accelerated pace, affecting the organs and systems of not only the woman herself, but also the fetus in her womb.
Let’s look at just a few examples of what the consequences of sexually transmitted diseases for offspring can be .
For example, gonorrhea. This ailment occupies one of the leading positions among the “diseases of Venus.” The symptoms of gonorrhea in women are redness and swelling of the external genital organs, profuse purulent discharge from the urethra, a sharp, unpleasant odor, pain when urinating.
The presence of gonococci does not affect conception in any way, but in the future, a pregnant woman may develop such a painful condition as decidual endometritis. The result is a miscarriage – at the very beginning of pregnancy.
If the infection occurred at a later date (second trimester), spontaneous abortion does not occur. However, if gonorrhea is not detected in time and timely adequate treatment is not carried out, there is a high risk of developing fetal pathologies, as well as infection of the uterus and maternal ovarian adnexa in the postpartum period.
Consequences of chlamydia and ureaplasmosis
Chlamydia is rightfully considered the most common sexually transmitted disease. Moreover, this insidious ailment does not have any specific clinical symptoms – it usually proceeds asymptomatically. In addition, the manifestations of chlamydia can be indirect, depending on which organs are affected by chlamydia.
The negative consequences of this disease for offspring are the likelihood of polyhydramnios during pregnancy, the threat of prenatal effusion of water, premature birth, and placental insufficiency. Moreover, there are frequent cases of chlamydia infection in an unborn child, which has an extremely negative effect on his future health. Chlamydia, as a rule, is not reflected in the course of pregnancy itself.
Genital ureaplasmosis, like gonorrhea, can lead to spontaneous abortion in the early stages, cause premature birth, miscarriage. The risk of infection of the fetus is high, as a result of which, after birth, the child may develop severe purulent-septic diseases. Children of mothers with genital ureaplasmosis are most often born prematurely and underweight.
Do not forget that most genital infections at an early stage do not manifest themselves with any characteristic symptoms, and then, in an acute or chronic form, not every person will be able to recognize them by specific manifestations. Therefore, the recommendation of specialists, even in the period of preparation for the planned pregnancy, to undergo a detailed medical examination, in case of detection of STDs, to undergo a full treatment course (for both spouses), and only after that to start conceiving, becomes so relevant.