The incidence of sexually transmitted diseases in California has reached new high (or low levels), and the reported cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis have soared to 300,000, an increase of 45% from five years ago.
Reminder: The only safe sex is to make love with a condom. (Source: Ivanko_Brnjakovic / iStock / GettyImages) In 2017, more than 75,000 Californians were diagnosed with gonorrhea, an increase of 16% over the previous year, and nearly 218,000 people were diagnosed Chlamydia infections have increased by 9% since 2016, according to the latest report from the California Department of Public Health, the highest number since the 1990 report.
Despite this, health officials are most concerned about the increase in syphilis. Congenital syphilis (where the disease is transmitted from the mother to the child), resulting in 30 stillbirths in 2017. The total number of syphilis cases this year has just exceeded 13,000. The last time syphilis became popular in the state was in 1987.
Non-California may feel a sigh of relief (at least your status is clear, it seems). But it turns out that the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases in the country is on the rise. Last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that there were more than 2 million cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis in the United States in 2016, the highest number ever. That's right, used to .
At the time, Jonathan Memin, Director of the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, MD, M.P.H. Yes, sexually transmitted diseases and tuberculosis prevention, calling this problem "is a growing threat" and said that sexually transmitted diseases "beyond our ability to cope." Damn!
What is behind the record numbers and what are they doing? To learn more, LIVESTRONG.COM talked with Heidi M. Bauer, Director of the Department of STD Control, California Department of Public Health, MD, MPH .
As Dr. Bower explained, California is a large state with different geographical locations, so the growth of different groups of peopleThere are different reasons. Among men who have sex with men in “mainly urban areas”, the arrival of HIV prevention tools (such as pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP) has led to a decline in condom use. (Some reports also indicate that young people's condom use is declining ple.)
"People feel that HIV infection is very safe, I think they forget that they still face the risk of other sexually transmitted diseases," Dr. Bower Say. She added that the mobile dating app also makes it easy for people to meet, make love, and then go to AWOL, which can be a challenge when someone diagnosed with STD may want to notify past partners.
However, other parts of the state - such as the rest of the country - have no relevance to mobile applications and HIV prevention strategies. On the contrary, poverty, homelessness, mental illness and the “extreme obstacles” of health care are the culprit.
Lack of funding has also led to the closure of STD clinics in low-income areas. “Once the STD clinic is closed, people will not be able to get free, high-quality clinics and STD services,” Dr. Bower said.
So does this mean that sexually transmitted diseases are limited to some extent and restricted to certain groups of people? There is no such luck. "People are crossing the county border - people with infectious diseases are never in a state or county," Dr. Bauer said.
In order to maintain safety, the use of condoms is clearly necessary, as is the case with routine testing, especially because of syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia usually do not have any symptoms. Untreated, chlamydia and gonorrhea can cause pelvic inflammatory disease and infertility, and syphilis can cause severe brain damage. Fortunately, antibiotics can treat most cases (not "super" types).
If you haven't had an STD test for sex and contraception for a while (or have been drinking), go to the CDC's Get Tested website to find a clinic near you. knowledge is power!
What is your idea?
Are you surprised by the rise in STD rates? Do you know people who are more lax in their use of condoms? Do you often take the test? Please let us know in the comments below.
