Premarital Screening in the Middle East

The year of broadcasting your engagement on social media and to anyone who will listen is finally over – now you have to plan the extravagant one-day spectacle. Amongst trying on the entire racks of wedding dresses, the brutal selection of attendees, you may become lost in all the potential ways a napkin can be folded and forget the true purpose of the marriage: to become a family. Whether this means you want a hoard of children or – to quote Carrie and Mr Big from Sex & The City – quite content with being ‘Just Us Two’, a premarital health screen should be somewhere in your wedding to-do list.

Getting tested before marriage helps to raise awareness about any potential health complications that may also affect your future spouse or child. Aside from genetic blood disorders, STIs are also a cause for concern as untreated infections may trigger problems that affect your reproductive system, or the health of your partner and child. This means that you may end up suffering from infertility or women could experience issues with pregnancy.

Many sexually transmitted infections are curable with the right course of treatment prescribed by a doctor. Some may require monitoring and long-term management. Whether you test positive or not, you will be given the knowledge and support to make plans for a healthy family.

Regular testing is important, particularly if you have engaged in high-risk sexual activities such as unprotected sex, sex with multiple partners, or with a female or male sex worker. Anyone who is sexually active is at risk of STIs. It only takes one encounter to catch a sexually transmitted infection.

Common STIs to test for before marriage:

There are many different infections that can affect your fertility and your relationship. That’s why it’s a good idea to get a comprehensive range of tests done so you have the confidence and peace of mind knowing you have covered all the bases. Not all STIs need unprotected sex to pass from person to person so getting tested is an important step before you get married.
Mike Asher, Co-Founder of Better2Know

Fertility and Pregnancy in the Middle East

Untreated sexually transmitted infections can trigger the development of fertility and pregnancy problems as a result of irreversible damage to your reproductive system.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urges pregnant women to increase their awareness of common STIs that could cause pregnancy complications, including:

Infertility
Urethritis
Epididymitis
Pelvic inflammatory disease.

Pregnant women may experience:

Preterm labour
Premature rupture of membranes
Miscarriage
Low birth weight
Stillbirths.

Creating a new life is one of the greatest things we can do. But it also carries responsibilities and a big one is making certain your new child is not exposed to harm. Getting tested is one of the best things you can do to make certain your child will develop healthy and strong and is something everyone who is going to be a parent must do.
Mike Asher, Co-Founder of Better2Know