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Sexually Transmitted Diseases

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Textbook of Clinical Pediatrics

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Definition/Classification

Sexually transmitted diseases (STD) are infections caused by a varied group of organisms, including bacteria (Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Chlamydia trachomatis, Treponema pallidum), viruses (herpes simplex virus, HIV, human papilloma virus), and parasites (Trichomonas vaginalis) that are transmitted predominantly by sexual activity. STDs can also occur in young children, which can have serious social and medical legal implications. Children can acquire an STD during delivery from their mothers, if they happen to be infected, from sexual abuse or from consensual sexual activity as adolescents. Identification of an STD in a young child can initiate an investigation of sexual abuse. However, the diagnosis or how the infection was acquired may not be certain.

The Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect of the American Academy of Pediatrics defines child sexual abuse as “… when a child is engaged in sexual activities that he or she cannot comprehend, for which the child is...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, SUNY Downstate Medical Center, 450 Clarkson Ave, Brooklyn, NY, 10708, USA

    Margaret R. Hammerschlag M.D. (Professor)

Authors
  1. Margaret R. Hammerschlag M.D.
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Correspondence to Margaret R. Hammerschlag M.D. .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Medicine, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia

    Abdelaziz Y. Elzouki (Professor of Pediatrics) (Professor of Pediatrics)

  2. National Center of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (NCAAI), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Harb A. Harfi (Director) (Director)

  3. Consultant Pediatric Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Islamic Hospital, Amman, Jordan

    Hisham M. Nazer

  4. Seattle Children's Hospital University of Washington, School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA

    F. Bruder Stapleton (Professor and Chair Department of Pediatrics) (Professor and Chair Department of Pediatrics)

  5. Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Woman and Infants Hospital, Providence, RI, USA

    William Oh (Professor of Pediatrics) (Professor of Pediatrics)

  6. University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL, USA

    Richard J. Whitley (Professor of Pediatrics) (Professor of Pediatrics)

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© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Hammerschlag, M.R. (2012). Sexually Transmitted Diseases. In: Elzouki, A.Y., Harfi, H.A., Nazer, H.M., Stapleton, F.B., Oh, W., Whitley, R.J. (eds) Textbook of Clinical Pediatrics. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-02202-9_71

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-02202-9_71

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-02201-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-02202-9

  • eBook Packages: MedicineReference Module Medicine

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