Latest statistics on chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis show the three highly treatable infections continue to spread in the United States.
"Chlamydia
and gonorrhea are stable at unacceptably high levels and syphilis is
resurgent after almost being eliminated," said John Douglas, director
of the division of sexually transmitted diseases at the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention.
"We have among the highest rates of STDs of any developed country in the world," Douglas added in a telephone interview.
The CDC's latest study on STDs found:
* 1.2 million cases of chlamydia were reported in 2008, up from 1.1 million in 2007.
* Nearly 337,000 cases of gonorrhea were reported.
* Adolescent girls 15 to 19 years had the most chlamydia and gonorrhea cases of any age group at 409,531.
Syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhea can all be treated with antibiotics but untreated can cause pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility, ectopic pregnancy and can infect newborns.
Source: Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE5AF14A20091116