STIs and preventing them during travel

Page last reviewed 2.9.2024

Symptoms are not a reliable indicator for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. All STIs can occur without symptoms. If you have had sex during your trip without a condom or dental dam, or one was used but it became loose or broke, it is best to get tested for STIs after your trip. 

Approximately half of the HIV infections of people in Finland take place when travelling abroad through unprotected sex. HIV is more prevalent nearly everywhere in the world when compared to Finland.

Experiencing STI symptoms during a trip

If you start experiencing symptoms indicative of a sexually transmitted infection during your trip, it is best to seek out an appointment with a local doctor. If you do so, it is important to record information about the medication provided – you can keep the medication packaging, for example. It is also a good idea to keep any healthcare documents, such as laboratory results, either by taking them with you or sending them by encrypted email. 

If you experience symptoms during a short trip, you can seek out STI testing immediately after the trip. You can schedule an appointment for STI testing in advance through services such as Omaolo, Maisa and Hivpoint’s website.

It’s important to get tested and receive the right treatment

Only certain antibiotics and antiviral medications are effective for specific sexually transmitted diseases. The duration of the course of medication also varies. It is important to undergo testing and receive appropriate care if necessary.

For example, the bacteria causing gonorrhea, or the clap, is resistant to most antibiotics. Abroad, there have also been rare occurrences of gonorrhea strains that are resistant to all antibiotics.

Because of this, it is extremely important to treat gonorrhea under a doctor’s supervision and not with antibiotics you have acquired yourself. For example, azithromycin, which is prescribed as a treatment for some sexually transmitted infections and is available in some countries as an over-the-counter product, has no effect on gonorrhea.

When travelling, it is best to consider that some sexually transmitted diseases that are rare in Finland may be more common elsewhere. Please note that sex during travel may result in sexually contracting other diseases that are not categorised as STIs. These include scabies, which causes skin symptoms, and shigellosis, which causes gastrointestinal symptoms.

Condoms and lubricants

Although PrEP medication has become an effective and pivotal method for protecting against HIV, it does not protect from other sexually transmitted infections. Using a condom and lubricant is still the most effective way of protecting yourself from other STIs.

It’s best to take condoms and lubricants with you already when leaving your country of origin. When you know what condom fits you best in your home country, the same product will likely also be best for you when travelling. Of course, you can also buy condoms and lubricants at most travel destinations, but people can often forget to buy them during their vacation excitement.

Hygiene when travelling

Contracting a viral or bacterial infection is more likely at many travel destinations than in Finland. So, in order to avoid any unfortunate complications, it is best to take good care of hygiene when travelling. Infections such as campylobacter and giardia can be transmitted through food or water, so pay attention to what you eat and drink. It’s very important for sexual health to take hepatitis infection risks into account.

Particularly high-risk places for hepatitis infections include places where group sex occurs often, such as sex clubs and saunas. These places often have showers for anal douching. When several customers use the same shower heads without them being replaced or disinfected between uses, there is a high risk of hepatitis infections. It is best to have your own personal shower head for anal douching at such clubs or saunas or manage the cleaning another way so that there is no transmission risk of hepatitis.