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The Minnesota Department of Health announced Tuesday, April 30, that 32,024 cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis were reported in 2018, up from 30,981 in 2017, an increase of 3%. This is a record number, confirmed Dr. Ruth Lynfield, Epidemiologist and Medical Director of the Department of Health. The number of cases reported in 2017 reached an unprecedented level, as were the 28,631 cases reported in 2016 and the 25,986 cases in 2015.
This is a sign that the message is not being broadcast, Lynfield said.
"We need to get the message that sexually transmitted diseases do not always have symptoms and that they can still be transmitted," Lynfield said during a phone interview. "And they can also have consequences, including infertility. It is therefore very important to be tested and people should know that the tests are accurate. It's easy and the treatment is effective. "
Chlamydia remained the most commonly reported infectious disease in Minnesota, with a 2% increase to 23,564 cases, according to the health department. The majority of these have occurred among adolescents and young adults aged 15 to 24, and one in three cases in Greater Minnesota.
The number of gonorrhea cases increased by 16% to 7,542.
St. Louis County was a special case for chlamydia. The number of cases in the county has gone from 888 in 2017 to 847 last year. But the number of gonorrhea in the county has gone from 174 in 2017 to 253 last year.
At the state level, the rate of gonorrhea per 100,000 population reached a record level in 2018 and was 15% higher than that of 2017, said Jered Shenk, an epidemiologist in the Department of Health. of the state.
But the increase was stronger in Greater Minnesota, said Shenk – 35%.
Cases of syphilis have generally decreased by 2% to 918. But the number of cases of congenital syphilis – in which the disease is transmitted by the placenta of the mother – has increased from 2 to 10.
Shenk noted that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the rate of infants born with syphilis had doubled in the last four years. In Minnesota, the rate per 100,000 live births went from zero in 2014 to 15.2 last year.
Congenital syphilis can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature birth, birth defects and the death of a baby, according to the Department of Health. But it can be avoided with proper screening and treatment during pregnancy.
"It's very important for providers to know that women are screened for syphilis during pregnancy," Lynfield said. "And it's also important for antenatal care providers to know that if a woman does not have prenatal care, she should be screened for syphilis when she is admitted to give birth."
The number of HIV cases increased slightly from 280 to 286.
Sixty cases of acute hepatitis C have been reported, up from 59 in 2017. The highest rate is among Native Americans, according to the Department of Health, and more than half of people diagnosed with hepatitis C have reported having used injection drugs.
For the first time, the highest number of newly reported cases of hepatitis C was in the 26 to 30 age group. Previously, the highest number was among baby boomers.
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