If you’re at all sexually active, getting tested for STDs
is necessary—but that doesn't make it any less terrifying. None of us want to
face the possibility that our lady biz isn't 100 percent healthy. Still,
there's always a risk, no matter how buttoned up you are about using
protection.
So what's your individual risk factor? Researchers at Johns Hopkins
University created a quiz that you can take in the comfort of your own home, no
stirrups and speculum necessary.
The seven-question quiz was used in
a study published in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections
to see if a short questionaire could accurately predict a
person's risk of having an STD. For the study, researchers asked over 1,000 men
and women for their age, gender, and questions about their sex life, like "Do you have more than one partner
currently?" "Do you always use condoms?" The study found that the results of this
quiz accurately predicted
a woman's risk of having an STD. For dudes, not so much. (Though the study
authors aren't sure why that is).
After taking the quiz, your results determine your risk status (i.e.
low, intermediate, high, very high). Then, you can order a free online STD self-collection kit (yay,
Internet!) to get your actual infection status via the website. The site will
send your results to a clinic near your home, where you can get free treatment,
if necessary.
You can take the full quiz here.
The good news is that researchers found that most of the women who took
the quiz and then ordered the collection kit were STD-free. Even the women
whose score predicted the highest risk only had a 31.4 percent infection rate.
That being said, it's important to remember that no matter what your
risk is, there is always the chance that you could have contracted an STD. In
the study, roughly eight percent of low-risk women still tested positive.
So put on your PJs, crack open your laptop and a beer, and take control
of your sexual health.
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