[ad_1]
Health officials record record rates of badually transmitted diseases, including a resurgence of some rare infections, such as gonorrhea and syphilis. These STDs are on the rise as public health budgets for testing, prevention and public awareness are reduced.
In the Ohio Valley, for example, a review of federal and state data shows that some communities in Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia have recorded an increase of more than 200 percent Chlamydia infections between 2011 and 2017. And in four counties in Kentucky and West Virginia, reported gonorrhea cases jumped by 1,000% or more during this period.
Matt Prior is the spokesperson for the National Nonprofit Coalition of STD Directors. They are the people on the front lines. According to Prior, STDs now represent a public health crisis, particularly in parts of the Appalachians already struggling with an opioid epidemic. 
"We are seeing an increasing number of syphilis and other STD foci badociated with the opioid crisis," he said. "States that are particularly affected by the opioid crisis are those who are particularly affected by the STD epidemic."
As rates went up, funding decreased. Thus, while STDs have risen by 30% over the last five years to an unprecedented level, the amount of federal funding allocated to prevention and education has steadily declined since 2003. Previously, funding for Federal is essential for states like Kentucky, West Virginia and Ohio.
"The federal prevention line against STDs is the only line or the only flow of funding available to these states. So it's really the first and the last line of defense, "he said.
Generational Risks
Previously, a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was particularly troubling. The report showed an increase in the number of infant deaths as more and more newborns contract syphilis from their mothers during delivery.
According to the report, the number of babies born with syphilis would have increased from 362 in 2013 to 918 in 2017. Cases mainly concerned the states of the West and South. In his report, Dr. Jonathan Mermin, director of the National Center for HIV / AIDS, viral hepatitis, STDs and CDC tuberculosis, said that syphilis can lead to "miscarriage, death of a newborn and serious physical and mental health problems throughout life ". 19659002] Syphilis during pregnancy is easily treated with the right antibiotics. However, if she is not cared for, a pregnant woman with syphilis has up to an 80% chance of pbading it on to her baby, the report said.
Prior said that the mortality rate in infected infants is high. His coalition encourages testing for syphilis as a mandatory test at the first prenatal visit of a woman. He added that this epidemic shows the extent to which access to preventive care and antenatal care is profoundly needed.
"It's basically a failure of the public health system and a failure for our country because we should not see mothers and children, children die for diseases that are easy to treat and identify, "he said.
"It's Scary"
Jim Thacker is the spokesperson for the Madison County Health Department in Kentucky. He said public health officials were expecting outbreaks of infectious diseases. Adapting to and responding to changes is the fundamental mission of public health.
But, he said, the recent upsurge of diseases such as chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis is something different. Overall, the CDC reported 2.4 million new cases of this disease in 2017. Thacker said that a handful of cases in Madison County reflected a 300% increase in the number of syphilis cases. 
"It's scary every time you see something coming back that you thought you had control," he says. Syphilis, he said, has been largely eradicated for more than 50 years.
Thacker added that discussing badually transmitted diseases makes people feel uncomfortable. "It's not something people want to talk about," he said.
Over the last few months, he has made great efforts to talk about STDs to middle and high school students. Thacker said that part of the increase in STDs could be linked to a lack of fear of HIV among people born after the AIDS epidemic. This effective long-term control makes condom use less urgent for adolescents and young adults.
If the correct information is provided to them, says Thacker, people can change their minds. If they are tested, they can avoid the most serious consequences of diseases.
Thacker says that many young people know very little about badually transmitted diseases that are now emerging, including symptoms. He said that at the time they are diagnosed, significant damage may occur. Untreated syphilis, for example, can cause a serious neurological disease. And untreated gonorrhea can cause serious health problems, especially in women, including chronic pelvic pain, life-threatening ectopic pregnancy, and infertility.
Thacker stated that health officials were also concerned about the possibility of gonorrhea becoming drug-resistant. According to the CDC, gonorrhea has become resistant to a series of medications, starting with penicillin.
Get tested
According to the CDC, the highest rates of STDs are those between 15 and 25 years of age, accounting for 40% of new cases.
Priscillana Cawood, a student at Eastern Kentucky University, also works to educate her peers. She takes STDs seriously.
"On my personal social media, I am the CDC and various health services. I like to keep me informed, "she said.
Cawood is primarily interested in infectious diseases and is the daughter of a nurse who speaks well. This combination could explain why she has long been "the girlfriend". It's one of his peers toward which friends turn to get information on STDs. This is a role she has played since college. She understands that it is common for young people to push back their badual limits. But she is trying to help people understand that there can be consequences.
People can be carefree, especially in college or out, she said.
"Some people derive an extreme benefit and end up with an illness that they do not want or never intend to contract because A) they do not did not know all the facts, B) they were careless, "she said.
Cawood is also a trainee at the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department, where she sometimes attends tests, which can be a mental block.
need to know the answer, but you do not want to know it, "she said.
She nevertheless encourages everyone to be tested regularly.
For more information on STD testing, consult your primary care physician at the following address: Campus Clinic or Local Public Health Department
Source link
