Where Can I Get Tested for an Std

Key takeaways:

• Many STDs such as herpes, chlamydia, and gonorrhea can be tested for at home.

• You can get tested for STDs at home with or without insurance depending on the service.

• Poor sample collection is always a risk in any type of diagnostic testing, so be sure to follow the instructions precisely.

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Cases of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) have been on the rise in recent years. There are more than 20 million cases of STDs in the U.S. each year — with about half of those in people ages 15 to 24.

Untreated, STDs in women can lead to severe reproductive health complications including pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), which can lead to infertility, as well as ectopic pregnancy and congenital infection. In men, untreated STDs can cause infertility, testicular swelling or infection, and epididymal infection or obstruction.  HIV is also an increased risk for people with STDs.

Testing for STDs is a routine part of a trip to the doctor. But in the midst of the pandemic, routine medical exams often are suspended or just put on the back-burner. Free and low-cost clinics that routinely provide HIV and STD testing may also have reduced hours or services due to the pandemic.

If you need to get tested for STDs but would prefer not to see a provider in person, at home STD testing is a great option.

With at-home STD testing a kit is shipped to your home where you collect your sample and then you send it to a lab for analysis. Results are reported via email, website, or app. We'll go over how at home STD tests work in depth here, including, how much they cost, where to find them, and more.

What are STD symptoms — and when do they usually happen?

Women usually don't have STD symptoms that prompt them to get tested; when an STD is detected it's typically because a woman has been screened based on her reporting of sexual activity. If symptoms do appear, they may take a few weeks to develop. In addition, STD symptoms can be difficult to tell apart from those of a urinary tract infection (UTI) or bacterial vaginosis.

STD symptoms for women can include:

• Burning or itching in the vagina

• A discharge or odor from the vagina

• Pain around the pelvis

• Bleeding from the vagina that is not normal

• Pain deep inside during sex

• Sores, bumps, or blisters in the vagina, anus, or mouth

• Burning and pain with urine or with bowel movements

• Having to go to the bathroom often

Until after the pandemic emergency response is over, the CDC has advised that women with symptoms should be prioritized for testing and treatment — and that routine screening should be postponed. But women without symptoms still have options for testing and can seek treatment if they test positive for an STD.

STD symptoms for men can vary, and some infections don't cause external symptoms. For STDs like gonorrhea, syphilis, and chlamydia, symptoms can include:

• Painful urination

• Swollen testicles

• Green, yellow, or white discharge from the penis

• Blisters on the penis and testicles and occasionally near the rectum and upper thighs

• Itchy rash

• Swollen lymph nodes in the groin

What are the pros and cons of STD testing at home without a doctor?

Not visiting a doctor's office — and heading directly into STD testing — could save you time and money, especially if you don't have health insurance. In addition, during the pandemic routine, in-person medical visits are discouraged to protect patients from potential contagion and to allow hospitals to devote resources to the most urgent needs.

However, deciding on the best STD test for you can be difficult; there's a large number of available options, and it can be tough to identify precisely what tests you may need (we've included a table below to help you sort through the common choices). The most common STDs that physicians screen for are chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV.

The CDC recommends that all sexually active women who are younger than 25 years old be tested for chlamydia and gonorrhea every year. Women who are 25 years or older who have new or multiple sex partners or a sex partner with an STD should also be tested every year.

HIV testing often falls into its own category. Testing and care on that front is more likely to be available in clinics —  but there are also newer tests that can enable sample collection and results at home from start to finish.

Poor sample collection is always a risk in diagnostic testing, but it can be even more of an issue when it comes to collecting a sample by yourself. So be sure to follow the instructions precisely.

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How do at-home and lab-direct STD tests work?

You will need to submit a sample for the tests. Required samples vary, depending on the type of disease being tested for, and can include a urine sample, a finger prick-blood sample, or a vaginal, anal, or oral swab.

The tests are conducted in comparable labs and in the same way as a standard test through a clinic or doctor's office. These approaches simply skip the doctor's referral — and you won't have access to immediate treatment upon results through follow-up care from a doctor.

So, if you receive a positive test result, be sure to seek out appropriate treatment. Also, you need to notify any sexual partners you may have exposed that they should also get tested for that infection.

Types of at-home STD tests

Many commonly diagnosed STDs now have at-home test kits available. Tests that have traditionally needed to be performed in a clinic setting are now available for home use. This makes it easier for those without health insurance, who live in rural areas without accessible health care, or who simply want a more convenient testing option to obtain lab-quality test results.

Some at-home test providers also provide telehealth services to those with positive results. This allows for patients to receive medical care and treatment without needing to see a physician in person. Test kits for the following STDs are available either in stores or via mail-order for home delivery:

• Herpes

• Chlamydia

• HPV

• Syphilis

• Gonorrhea

• HIV

What are rapid, at-home STD tests?

There are some rapid, at-home STD tests available; they are designed to function like a home pregnancy test, with self-collection and results within 30 minutes or so. However, these are not approved by the FDA to be sold directly to consumers. There is one FDA-approved rapid, at-home test for HIV.

Diagnostic tests that are sold for direct use entirely by consumers require FDA approval. But  STD tests done in a lab don't have to be approved by the FDA. Those testing providers simply have to show that their laboratories are compliant with CLIA certification, which means the laboratories and their processes are up to the standards required by federal law.

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How accurate are at-home STD test kits?

Most at-home tests are  processed at certified laboratories, so as long as your sample was collected and preserved correctly until it was processed and then analysed at a CLIA-certified laboratory, your at-home test results should be comparable to what you would receive otherwise.

A 2015 review looked at 2,100 studies comparing the sensitivity and specificity of at-home vs. physician ordered chlamydia and gonorrhea tests. Sensitivity refers to a test's ability to determine a positive result and specificity refers to the test's ability to determine a negative result. The study determined that the tests had sufficient sensitivity and specificity.

The quality of the lab results depend mainly on the quality of sample collection. The likelihood of a contaminated or unusable sample is higher in home-collection compared to physician collected samples.

How much do at-home or lab-direct STD tests cost?

A test that detects three or four STDs starts at just under $100. That goes up to about $400 for some of the most comprehensive offerings that detect 8 or 9 different STDs.

If the cost is a problem, some regional Planned Parenthood offices are also offering at-home STD testing; their services are usually free or low cost, depending on your income level. There are also many free and low-cost clinics that remain open, perhaps with limited hours, for in-person STD and HIV testing.

Below is a list of at-home and lab-based tests available without a doctor's visit, with information about costs, how long results take, and which STDs they can test for.

Can you get tested for STDs without insurance?

Yes — and some at-home and lab-direct testing providers will also work with insurance. A couple of them are able to incorporate your insurance information up front, or they offer information on how to submit for reimbursement from your insurer after you have already paid for the test.

The bottom line

At-home testing for STDs is an affordable option for people who need screening but either don't want to or are unable to see a physician. At-home testing is reliable as long as the instructions are followed closely and samples are collected correctly. You don't need insurance for at-home testing, but if your test is positive you will need to follow up with a doctor for treatment.

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Where Can I Get Tested for an Std

Source: https://www.goodrx.com/health-topic/stds/at-home-std-testing

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