In your email inbox: "You've got an STD!"

The web 2.0 solution to one of those pesky drawbacks of the "sexual revolution", from WebMD:

It has never been so important to check your inbox.

Four years after the launch of inSPOT.org, which allows people with sexually transmitted diseases to notify sexual partners via email, nearly 50,000 e-cards have been sent, according to an article published in PLoS Medicine.

The site is designed to increase the notification of partners -- part of an overall strategy to prevent and control sexually transmitted diseases. In the U.S. there are 19 million new cases of sexually transmitted diseases diagnosed each year, including 900,000 cases of chlamydia, 330,000 cases of gonorrhea, and 55,400 HIV infections, according to the PLoS Medicine article.

A picture:

A sample message:

The electronic cards deliver the news in a variety of styles. Some are flirty: "You're too hot to be out of action. I got diagnosed with an STD since we played. You might want to get checked too."

Some are somber: "Who? What? When? Where? It doesn't matter. I got an STD; you might have it too. Please get checked out."

Helpfully, WebMD considered these sort of articles to be topical to the above story:

• What Does It Take to Lift Your Sex Life to the Next Level?
• Which Birth Control is Right For You?
• International Teen Sex Survey

... and it's a surprise that we need an E-Card STD-notification service?!