When sex can resume after treatment

Chlamydia

After the last dose of a seven-day course, or seven full days after single-dose treatment, once symptoms have gone. There is no extra seven days after finishing the standard seven-day course. CDC

Gonorrhea

Seven full days after the standard single injection, once any other prescribed treatment is finished, symptoms have settled and partners have been treated. CDC

Mgen

CDC: once the whole antibiotic sequence is finished and symptoms have gone, often around 14 days from starting, depending on the regimen. UK guidance: at least 14 days after starting, with symptoms settled. Some guidance also waits for a test of cure before sex without a condom; see below. CDC

Trichomoniasis

Guidance differs. Australian guidance: seven days after starting, or until the course is finished and symptoms have settled, whichever is later. NHS guidance adds a week after finishing, about 14 days from starting a seven-day course. The treating clinic's instructions apply. Australian STI guidelines NHS

Syphilis

Depends on the regimen and the guideline. Australian guidance: seven days after starting, or until treatment is complete and symptoms have settled, whichever is later. NHS: two weeks after finishing treatment, which is two weeks after a single injection and longer from the first dose when treatment has several doses. Australian STI guidelines NHS

Ureaplasma

No universal countdown. A positive result is often carriage, and routine treatment is not recommended. When a clinician treats a specific condition, that condition's treatment and waiting advice apply. European position statement

Shigella

At least 14 days after diarrhea ends, whenever antibiotics started or finished. This clock runs on symptoms, not on the antibiotic. CDC

Herpes: HSV-1 and HSV-2

Avoid contact with the affected area from the first tingling or burning until sores have fully healed. Antiviral medicine lowers the chance of passing it on but does not create a guaranteed date; it can still pass between outbreaks. CDC

HPV

No set date after treatment. Removing warts does not remove the virus, and it can still pass on after warts are gone. Follow any healing advice after a procedure. CDC

HIV

Not a number of days. Keeping the virus suppressed prevents sexual transmission: U=U. US guidance suggests another form of prevention, such as condoms or PrEP for partners, for at least the first six months of treatment and until a viral load below 200 copies/mL is documented. This is not a reason to stop having sex for six months. ClinicalInfo

Hepatitis B

No fixed interval after treatment. Use condoms with partners who are not immune; vaccination and confirmed immunity are the main protection. Starting antiviral treatment is not an all-clear. CDC

Hepatitis C

No general waiting period. Prevention depends on the activities and any blood exposure. Cure is usually confirmed by an RNA test at least 12 weeks after finishing treatment; that test date is not a ban on sex until then. CDC

Hepatitis A

Set by the illness: usually infectious until seven days after jaundice starts, or seven days after symptoms start if there is no jaundice. The NHS advises no sex without a condom or dam until then. Prolonged or returning illness gets individual advice. NHS

Mpox

When all sores, including any inside the body, have healed, scabs have fallen off and new skin has formed. This often takes two to four weeks from the start of illness; healing, not the calendar, sets the end point. World Health Organization