There are couples who entered into marriages without recourse to any medical test. Whenever it is time to get married, many people are obsessed with the enthusiasm of the wedding days, forgetting that what awaits them after wedding is more than the eye can see.
These days, a number of people become husbands and wives after the woman must have gotten pregnant outside wedlock. Maybe we should tell people to start testing each other before becoming boyfriends and girlfriends.
We have seen people who got married and started giving birth to kids with sickle cell anemia. That was because they did not know their genotype before sleeping with each other. They may end up spending all their earnings on the kids. This could have been avoided if the right thing was done initiatially.
What about those who tested positive for incurable diseases they contracted from their spouses? We can as well avert all these if we follow the normal process.
In the days of our parents, there may not be enough awareness about some diseases; and so, some tests may not be available. For instance, there was no COVID-19 until last year.
But today, there are many diseases in circulation and one needs to know his status and that of his or her spouse before saying “Yes, I do."
To build a strong marriage and avoid stories that touch in our marriages, everybody must get tested for these diseases before going into any relationship with anybody:
1. HIV
2. Hepatitis B
3. Hepatitis C
4. Other STI's
5. Genotype
6. Rhesus
7. Fertility profile
8. Chronic medical conditions
9. Covid19
10. Mental health
A doctor, Atangwho said up to 50% of people with Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI's) don't know they are infected until they get tested or start having symptoms.
For this reason, intending couples must first check if their partners have any life-threatening STI's like HIV, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Herpes. Note that some of these diseases can be contracted through other means like blood transfusions and sharing sharp objects. They are not just STIs.
After this, couples-to-be should check for the curable STI's like gonorrhoea, yeast infections, syphilis, Chlamydia among others.
Then, the next concern should be knowing your intending spouse's genotype and Rhesus compatibility.
As we all know, anybody with AS or SS genotype must marry a spouse with AA genotype. This is not negotiable.
For Rhesus, you can either be Rhesus positive or negative.
Dr said if a Rhesus NEGATIVE lady marries a Rhesus POSITIVE man, there's 50% chance their baby will be rhesus positive.
Note that if care is not taken during pregnancy and childbirth, this could cause Haemolytic Disease of the Newborn. Please learn more about this from your doctor.
The next is fertility tests. These are crucial for couples who would like to have kids.
Here are 3 common tests to confirm one's fertility:
- Seminal fluid analysis
- Hormonal assay
- Pelvic ultrasound scans
The scans will check the state of the internal reproductive organs.It is also important to check if your prospective spouse has any of the following chronic medical conditions:
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure
- Kidney disease
- Liver disease
If you know these, it will enable you to seek medical assistance early enough and also make the needed lifestyle adjustments.
On mental health, nobody should joke with this. You must know the mental health of your intending spouse. You may also need to run a background check to know if there is any mental illness in his or her family. Please avoid stories that touch.
We can't conclude without mentioning the novel Coronavirus.
Strictly speaking, COVID-19 is not a sexually transmitted infection.
However, it can be passed on through kissing and close body contact.
Please comment and share this article to educate others.
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