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Sexually Transmitted Diseases Rise Across the Northwest, Nationally

Neisseria gonorrhoeae
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Neisseria gonorrhoeae

The top three nationally reported STDs are chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis and they are all on the rise in the Northwest and across the nation.

Two weeks ago, Idaho’s Panhandle Health District reported a 280 percent increase in gonorrhea. It’s also on the rise in Washington—up 13 percent in the last three years. And Oregon has seen cases of the disease, known colloquially as “the clap” more than triple from just over 1,200 to 4,300 in the last 10 years.

Washington state Department of Health STD Controller Mark Aubin said STDs are occurring more in men, but it's men are who also getting screened more.

Aubin said gonorrhea is also developing a resistance to antibiotic treatment. He added that fewer people may be using condoms.

“I don’t think they are as popular as they used to be and I think people need to use them more often,” Aubin said. “They still work.”

Chlamydia and syphilis are also on the rise in all three states. Those numbers reflect a national trend.

The majority of cases reported to the CDC occurred among men. More than half the cases of STDs reported across the US occurred in adults between the ages of 20 and 29. 

Copyright 2017 Northwest News Network

Emily Schwing
Emily Schwing comes to the Inland Northwest by way of Alaska, where she covered social and environmental issues with an Arctic spin as well as natural resource development, wildlife management and Alaska Native issues for nearly a decade. Her work has been heard on National Public Radio’s programs like “Morning Edition” and “All things Considered.” She has also filed for Public Radio International’s “The World,” American Public Media’s “Marketplace,” and various programs produced by the BBC and the CBC. She has also filed stories for Scientific American, Al Jazeera America and Arctic Deeply.