Common sexually transmitted diseases caused by viruses are genital warts, genital herpes, the human immunodeficiency virus, human T cell lymphotropic virus, and hepatitis A, B, C. The chief determinants of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are demographic, economic, social, and behavioral based along with the status of healthcare system catering to prevention and management of STIs. Viral STIs unlike other STIs are difficult to treat and patients once afflicted may carry the virus throughout their life. However, all STIs are preventable. It is worthwhile to mention that the long-term impact of viral STIs on health is serious and sometimes life threatening. Prevention is the ultimate goal for these STIs and therefore all health personnel must have the correct knowledge regarding prevention and management of STIs so that the right message is percolated at the right time to the right population.
Elsevier, Most sexually transmitted viral infections are incurable and have consequences ranging from mild to severe. Genital warts and HPV infections are oncogenic with special reference to cervical carcinoma. Hepatitis A is a self-limiting disease. However, HBV and HCV infections can cause chronic infection of the liver which culminates in extreme suffering and death. Pregnant mothers with viral STIs transmit the infection to their newborns. Because prevention is the ultimate goal, health personnel at all levels must be knowledgeable about the prevention and treatment options for the STIs so that they can help in developing educational programs and patient education literature at mass level [2]. They also must provide efficient and sensitive counseling about prevention and treatment of various viral STIs at all levels of a healthcare service. It may be noted that simultaneous availability of new and effective preventive and therapeutic interventions like vaccines, effective microbicides, etc. render behavioral disinhibition, lack of adherence, and above all some degree of complacency among the people [1]. All these must be taken care of during the process of control and containment of viral STIs, strongly highlighting the principle of "Prevention is Better than Cure" as propagated by the Dutch philosopher Desiderius Erasmus
