Sexually Transmitted Diseases Are On The Rise

ATLANTA — Sexually spread diseases _ for years on the decline _ are on the rise, with reported chlamydia cases setting a record, government health officials said Tuesday.

The increase in chlamydia, a sometimes symptomless infection that can lead to infertility in women, is likely because of better screening, experts said. In 2007, there were 1.1 million cases, the most ever reported, said officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

At least 15,000 women become infertile each year because of untreated chlamydia and gonorrhea infections, said Dr. John M. Douglas Jr., director of the CDC's Division of STD Prevention.

Syphilis cases, which number only in the thousands, also rose modestly, while the number of gonorrhea cases remained roughly the same. Syphilis can kill, if left untreated, but chlamydia and gonorrhea are not life-threatening.

Chlamydia can infect men, but rates are nearly three times higher for women. That's at least partly due to 1993 federal recommendations that emphasize testing for sexually active women age 25 and under. That focus on screening in recent years is no doubt driving the record numbers, said Dr. Jonathan Zenilman, a professor of infectious diseases at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

"The issue with chlamydia is the more tests, the more you'll find," Zenilman said.

The percentage of young women being tested for the infection rose by double digits from 2003 to 2007, according to the National Committee for Quality Assurance, a nonprofit that monitors health care.

The latest case numbers for chlamydia translate to a rate of 370 cases per 100,000 people in 2007, up 7.5 percent from 2006.

Story continues below

advertisement

The reported cases are just part of the picture. Health officials believe as many as 2.8 million Americans get chlamydia each year.

Many men and women have no symptoms from it. Some women experience pain in their lower abdomen or notice a burning sensation or a pus-like discharge when they urinate. Some men may also feel a burning during urination or have a discharge.

Gonorrhea cases appear to have plateaued and are currently at about 356,000 cases. Syphilis was on the verge of being eliminated in the United States about 10 years ago, but lately has been inching up. More than 11,000 new cases of the most contagious form of the disease were reported in 2007.

Syphilis is relatively rare but has become a growing threat, particularly for gay and bisexual men, who accounted for about 65 percent of the 2007 cases.

___

On the Net:

The CDC report: http://www.cdc.gov/std/

Comments

[pab08]

I would imagine that no one will clap to celebrate these statistics.................

[Rivermont]

Great picture for the article.

[DoctorWhoDat]

The way the Bush administration put it to us, no wonder STD's have risen

[fuddly]

No reason not to get tested these days-- quick and private. www.justgettested.com

[PoliticalAmazon]

I wonder if RW will bring up his ab stin ence only policies in the in v ocat ion?

How does it reflect on Obama that RW helps spread VD?

[IRepTheKing]

Dare I say it? Yes I will : If you got married and was faithful to your spouse as God (yes, I said it. Sue me) intended, then you won't have to worry about parts falling of you. This is the result a of the immorality that has America feeling it's normal to sleep around.

[Sir681]

You mean like Solomon and David, with their multiple wives and concubines? Polygamy seems quite prevalent in the Bible.

[thisoldbroad]

No one is without sin.
God loves all his children. Not just the ones you approve of.

If we teach children the truth about s*x, including protection, we could reduced these numbers. It would also reduce abortion numbers.

Anyone should be able to walk into a family planning clinic to get all the information & help they need to prevent unwanted pregnancies & make informed decisions if they are pregnant. They don't promote abortions as the solution, it's only 1 option.

As a society we can't depend on every parent educating their children about these issues in an honest & open manner. These are the young women who end up with unwanted pregnancies & on government assistance. These are the young men that think nothing of fathering a child & moving on to the next partner.

If we don't insist young boys respect & honor young girls, the result is predictable.

Wake up.

[pab08]

UHHH yeah . Wow it must be quite a burden going through life being a human that knows the mind of God.
Strange perception that VD is spreading all over the globe as a result of the fornication.
of liberal heathen Americans - as opposed to the rest of the earth where people do not sleep around.
Try to look ouside of yourself once in a while. You might find it educational.

[sandiegoconservative]

With what has happend with the education of kids, you could put that under the "no duh" category.

[FITNESSSF]

Testing for STDs is so simple these days. If there is ANY possibility of infection, see a doctor or visit a clinic...GET TESTED.

http://hivstopswithus.org/en/CosgroveN