Experts doing research on sexually-transmitted diseases have made some progress with the discovery of a vaginal gel that could possibly lessen the frequency of genital herpes among females.

It was also mentioned in a report by the New York Times that the substance can reduce the risk of infection with the HIV virus.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describes genital herpes, which is more common in the U.S., as being caused by the herpes simplex virus types 1 or 2. A study revealed that the infection was found in more than 16 percent or 1 out of 6 persons within the ages of 14 to 49. It is more widespread among women than men.

The Australian Herpes Management Forum conducted a research which showed 12 percent of Australians carrying HSV-2 while approximately 76 per cent of Australians have HSV-1 which usually causes cold sores but also causes about 40 per cent of genital herpes.

Researches from the National Institutes of Health, Gilead Sciences, Incorporated and universities in Belgium and Italy were responsible for this achievement.

It was also found out the genital herpes is far more common than AIDS and the World Health Organization estimates that 20 percent of all sexually active adults have this malady.

Even if the infection is far from lethal, it could be painful, uncomfortable and messes up with sexual gratification.

At the moment, health departments of governments are waging an aggressive campaign against the proliferation of STDs.

In Australia, the University of New South Wales Kirby Institute reported during a sexual health conference last month that aborigines suffer more from sexually transmitted diseases than other Australians.

Aborigines were diagnosed with gonorrhoea at a rate of 804 per 100,000 last year - almost 27 times higher than the rate of 30 per 100,000 in the wider Australian community, according to the Huffington Post.

Scientists delivered the formal announcement during the International AIDS Conference in Vienna in 2010 that this gel was able to reduce H.I.V. infections by 39 percent and herpes by 51 percent.