Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) have been around for many centuries. A number of historic figures have been reported to have suffered from some form of STD, some of the reports are believed to be more of a political smear, but in many cases, the reports are true.

Among the more famous people reported to have been affected by an STD (often syphilis), include, Adolf Hitler, Al Capone, Idi Amin, Vladimir Lenin, Leo Tolstoy, Charles VIII of France, Christopher Columbus, Hernan Cortez, Benito Mussolini, Ivan the Terrible and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. It’s even been suggested that Napoleon, Beethoven and President John F. Kennedy may have had an STD.

So, what are STDs?

The CDC defines an STD as:

“Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are passed from one person to another through intimate physical contact – such as heavy petting – and from sexual activity including vaginal, oral, and anal sex. STDs are very common.”

They estimate that around 20 million new STD infections are diagnosed every year in the United States. This is large due to the societal elimination of many moral values that allow many to consider non-marital sexual relations as acceptable and often preferred.

The CDC says that there are dozens of diseases classified as sexually transmitted, but lists the following as the more common:

• Bacterial Vaginosis (BV)
• Chlamydia
• Gonorrhea
• Genital Herpes
• Hepatitis
• HIV/AIDS
• Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
• Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID)
• Syphilis
• Trichomoniasis

However, there is another STD, that is gaining attention and it’s one that few of you have probably heard of and it one not to be taken lightly. Have you ever heard of Mycoplasma genitalium?

Mycoplasma genitalium is a bacterium that causes an STD and unlike many other STDs that require vaginal penetration or oral sex, Mycoplasma genitalium can be spread simply by touching or rubbing someone’s genitalia who has the bacterial infection. It’s been around since at least the 1980s and possibly longer, but some studies suggest that it is rapidly becoming more wide spread with 1 in 100 adults carrying the bacteria.

The symptoms for men include a watery discharge from the penis along with pain (burning or stinging) when urinating. For women, the symptoms include bleeding after sex and between menstrual cycles, discharge from the vagina and pain during sex.

One of the things that makes Mycoplasma genitalium a growing problem is that there is no easy FDA-approved test to determine if someone has this STD, according to the CDC:

“No FDA-approved diagnostic test for M. genitalium is currently available in the United States. However, Hologic, Inc. (formerly Gen-Probe) has recently made analyte specific reagents (ASR) targeting M. genitalium commercially available for use with their Aptima TMA assay. Any laboratory that performs an in-house validation of the assay can use it to perform M. genitalium testing, and results can be used to guide clinical care. Laboratories interested in purchasing the M. genitalium ASR from Hologic can contact either the local sales representative or Hologic Customer Service.”

There are several tests being used in Europe, but none of them have yet been approved by the FDA.

As for treating a Mycoplasma genitalium, the CDC states:

“Fluoroquinolones other than moxifloxacin are not recommended for the treatment of M. genitalium. Microbiologic treatment failure (persistent detection of the organism) after levofloxacin ranges from 30%–67%, and after ofloxacin was 66% in the only study evaluating it. In contrast, cure rates for moxifloxacin range from 70%–100%. Several fourth-generation quinolones (i.e. gatifloxacin and sitafloxacin) have somewhat better efficacy against M. genitalium than levofloxacin and ofloxacin, but these are not available in the United States. However, treatment failures have been reported for both the seven-day and the ten-day moxifloxacin regimens, with few studies evaluating longer duration of treatment. The CDC 2015 STD Treatment Guidelines recommends moxifloxacin to treat men and women with previous treatment failure.”

However, doctors in the United Kingdom are warning that Mycoplasma genitalium could be the next superbug, meaning that it’s very hard to treat. Why? According to a recent report:

“Because symptoms of M. genitalium can resemble those of chlamydia, a more common STI, people with M. genitalium are often treated with antibiotics for chlamydia, according to CNN. But this treatment approach is a problem, because antibiotics for chlamydia don’t work well for M. genitalium, and their use can promote antibiotic resistance.”

“‘We are already seeing resistance to Mycoplasma genitalium because we are using antibiotics that treat chlamydia very well but [don’t] treat mycoplasma very well,’ Dr. Mark Lawton, a consultant in sexual health and HIV and the clinical lead at the Liverpool Center for Sexual Health, told CNN.”

The only solution I can offer is to restrict sexual activity to a marital partner only, but if that is not an option for you, then beware that not even using condoms can prevent the spread of this STD. Simply touching one’s genitals or anything that has been against the genitals is enough to infect someone. If you’re willing to play, then you need to be ready to pay.