Health
CDC Finds STIs Including Gonorrhea and Syphilis on The Rise
|
|
- Over 2.5 million STIs were reported in the United States in 2021, marking a 7% increase in cases between 2017 and 2021.
- Cases of syphilis have increased by nearly 74% during that time.
- Between 2017 to 2021, cases of gonorrhea have increased by about 28%, cases of syphilis have increased by nearly 74 %, and cases of congenital syphilis have increased by over 203%.
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) like syphilis, chlamydia, and gonorrhea continued to rise in 2021, a new report from U.S. Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC).
Over 2.5 million STIs were reported in the United States in 2021, marking a 7% increase in cases between 2017 and 2021.
Cases of increases in syphilis saw the biggest spike, growing by 32% between 2020 and 2021.
The CDC says the COVID-19 pandemic, which drove many people to forego or delay prevention services like testing, contributed to the spread of STIs.
Even before the pandemic hit, however, STIs were on the rise — a trend that has disproportionately impacted ethnic minority groups, gay and bisexual men, and people younger than age 25.
“Rates of STIs continue to increase in the U.S. with alarming numbers over the past few years. Changes in sexual behavior with a decrease in condom use, decrease in prevention and testing efforts are likely the major contributors to the increase in STIs in the U.S.,” says Dr. Maria Alcaide, an infectious disease specialist with UHealth, University of Miami Health System and a professor of Medicine with the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.
Between 2017 and 2021, cases of gonorrhea have increased by about 28%, cases of syphilis have increased by nearly 74%, and cases of congenital syphilis have increased by over 203%.
The report showed that cases of chlamydia dropped by 4%, but the researchers suspect the decline is due to reduced prevention and public health efforts during the pandemic and not an actual decrease in infections.
“The COVID-19 pandemic may have contributed to the rising rates of STIs as people may have had less access to education, testing, and treatment,” Dr. Alcaide says.
But STIs were swiftly rising even before the pandemic hit.
Data suggests barriers to care, discrimination, and the stigma attached to STIs have all contributed to the rise in STIs.
Reduced condom use, a decrease in prevention and screening efforts, and opioid use, which is known to go hand-in-hand with STIs, are believed to have played a role, too.
Between 2020 and 2021 alone, syphilis rose by 32%.
“While most of new syphilis cases occur among men who have sex with men, we are also seeing an increasing number of cases among women, which reflects the increase in congenital syphilis,” Alcaide said.
Dr. Irene Stafford, a maternal-fetal medicine physician and an associate professor of OB/GYN with McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, says syphilis is often a silent infection that presents with no symptoms.
“The rash and lesions of early syphilis can be asymptomatic and after they clear, an infected individual is unaware they are still infected,” she says.
People who are infected can then unknowingly spread it to others through skin-to-skin contact or mucosal contact with an infected person.
“Transmission is easier than with other STIs that are transmitted through sexual intercourse,” says Alcaide.
Many STIs can be asymptomatic in certain individuals, however, left untreated, can lead to complications like chronic pelvic pain, pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility, pregnancy complications, an increased risk of contracting infections like HIV, and infant death.
Syphilis, for example, is more common in reproductive-aged people, including pregnant women, according to Dr. Stafford.
Untreated, the infection can be passed to the fetus and lead to health complications, like speed and liver problems and nerve issues, due to congenital syphilis.
To prevent the spread of STIs, all sexually-active people should get regularly tested once a year.
“If there is a new sexual partner, unprotected sex, recent STIs, or a partner with STIs testing should be done more frequently,” says Alcaide.
STI screenings and open conversations should be a part of all routine health care visits, according to Stafford, not just when people have behavioral risk factors.
“This discussion should include an open dialogue about practices and behaviors that might increase your risks of STI,” Stafford said.
To combat the spread of STIs, she thinks more non-traditional settings, like emergency rooms, should be screening patients for STIs.
Consistent condom use, early diagnosis, treatments, and vaccinations can all help stop the spread of STIs.
“Access to quality health care and innovative ways to reach our patients, increase health literacy and promote STI screening are desperately needed to reduce STI and the morbidity and mortality of congenital syphilis — an infection that is 100% preventable,” says Stafford.
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) like syphilis, chlamydia, and gonorrhea rose by 7% 2021. Syphilis saw the biggest surge, growing by 32% between 2020 and 2021.
The pandemic, which led to reduced public health efforts and testing, likely contributed to the surge in cases, however, STI numbers have been growing for years. Health experts say there are many contributing factors behind the trend, such as limited access to care, reduced condom use, stigma, and heavier opioid use.
Article content
Grande Prairie RCMP issued a warning Friday after it was revealed fentanyl linked to a deadly overdose was mixed with a chemical that doesn’t respond to naloxone treatment.
The drugs were initially seized on Feb. 28 after a fatal overdose, and this week, Health Canada reported back to Mounties that the fentanyl had been mixed with Bromazolam, which is a benzodiazepine.
Article content
Mounties say this is the first recorded instance of Bromazolam in Alberta. The drug has previously been linked to nine fatal overdoses in New Brunswick in 2022.
The pills seized in Alberta were oval-shaped and stamped with “20” and “SS,” though Mounties say it can come in other forms.
Naloxone treatment, given in many cases of opioid toxicity, is not effective in reversing the effects of Bromazalam, Mounties said, and therefore, any fentanyl mixed with the benzodiazepine “would see a reduced effectiveness of naloxone, requiring the use of additional doses and may still result in a fatality.”
From January to November of last year, there were 1,706 opioid-related deaths in Alberta, and 57 linked to benzodiazepine, up from 1,375 and 43, respectively, in 2022.
Mounties say officers responded to about 1,100 opioid-related calls for service, last year with a third of those proving fatal. RCMP officers also used naloxone 67 times while in the field, a jump of nearly a third over the previous year.
Recommended from Editorial
Share this article in your social network
Health
CFIA continues surveillance for HPAI in cattle, while sticking with original name for disease – RealAgriculture
The Canada Food Inspection Agency will continue to refer to highly pathogenic avian influenza in cattle as HPAI in cattle, and not refer to it as bovine influenza A virus (BIAV), as suggested by the American Association of Bovine Practitioners earlier this month.
Dr. Martin Appelt, senior director for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, in the interview below, says at this time Canada will stick with “HPAI in cattle” when referencing the disease that’s been confirmed in dairy cattle in multiple states in the U.S.
The CFIA’s naming policy is consistent with the agency’s U.S. counterparts’, as the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has also said it will continue referring to it as HPAI or H5N1.
Appelt explains how the CFIA is learning from the U.S. experience to-date, and how it is working with veterinarians across Canada to stay vigilant for signs of the disease in dairy and beef cattle.
As of April 19, there has not been a confirmed case of HPAI in cattle in Canada. Appelt says it’s too soon to say if an eventual positive case will significantly restrict animal movement, as is the case with positive poultry cases.
This is a major concern for the cattle industry, as beef cattle especially move north and south across the U.S. border by the thousands. Appelt says that CFIA will address an infection in each species differently in conjunction with how the disease is spread and the threat to neighbouring farms or livestock.
Currently, provincial dairy organizations have advised producers to postpone any non-essential tours of dairy barns, as a precaution, in addition to other biosecurity measures to reduce the risk of cattle contracting HPAI.
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS | All Podcasts
jQuery(document).ready(function($) {
$(“#homesub”).validate(
rules:
first_name:
required: true,
minlength: 2
,
last_name:
required: true,
minlength: 2
,
email:
required: true,
email: true,
minlength: 2
,
state:
required: true,
,
role:
required: true,
,
“listid[]”:
required: true,
minlength: 1
,
messages:
first_name: “Your first name is required.”,
last_name: “Your last name is required.”,
email: “Please verify your email is correct.”,
state: “Your state/province is required.”,
role: “Your role is required.”,
“listid[]”: “Select at least one list is required.”
,
submitHandler: function()
$.ajax(
type: “POST”,
url: “https://www.realagriculture.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php”,
data:
action: “realag_cc_process_subscribe_onclick”,
form: “homesub”,
data: $(“#homesub”).serialize(),
,
dataType: “html”,
timeout: 30000,
error: function(response)
console.log(response);
,
success: function(response)
$(“#homesub”).html(response);
,
);
);
});
Health
Toronto reports 2 more measles cases. Use our tool to check the spread in Canada – Toronto Star
/* OOVVUU Targeting */
const path = ‘/news/canada’;
const siteName = ‘thestar.com’;
let domain = ‘thestar.com’;
if (siteName === ‘thestar.com’)
domain = ‘thestar.com’;
else if (siteName === ‘niagarafallsreview.ca’)
domain = ‘niagara_falls_review’;
else if (siteName === ‘stcatharinesstandard.ca’)
domain = ‘st_catharines_standard’;
else if (siteName === ‘thepeterboroughexaminer.com’)
domain = ‘the_peterborough_examiner’;
else if (siteName === ‘therecord.com’)
domain = ‘the_record’;
else if (siteName === ‘thespec.com’)
domain = ‘the_spec’;
else if (siteName === ‘wellandtribune.ca’)
domain = ‘welland_tribune’;
else if (siteName === ‘bramptonguardian.com’)
domain = ‘brampton_guardian’;
else if (siteName === ‘caledonenterprise.com’)
domain = ‘caledon_enterprise’;
else if (siteName === ‘cambridgetimes.ca’)
domain = ‘cambridge_times’;
else if (siteName === ‘durhamregion.com’)
domain = ‘durham_region’;
else if (siteName === ‘guelphmercury.com’)
domain = ‘guelph_mercury’;
else if (siteName === ‘insidehalton.com’)
domain = ‘inside_halton’;
else if (siteName === ‘insideottawavalley.com’)
domain = ‘inside_ottawa_valley’;
else if (siteName === ‘mississauga.com’)
domain = ‘mississauga’;
else if (siteName === ‘muskokaregion.com’)
domain = ‘muskoka_region’;
else if (siteName === ‘newhamburgindependent.ca’)
domain = ‘new_hamburg_independent’;
else if (siteName === ‘niagarathisweek.com’)
domain = ‘niagara_this_week’;
else if (siteName === ‘northbaynipissing.com’)
domain = ‘north_bay_nipissing’;
else if (siteName === ‘northumberlandnews.com’)
domain = ‘northumberland_news’;
else if (siteName === ‘orangeville.com’)
domain = ‘orangeville’;
else if (siteName === ‘ourwindsor.ca’)
domain = ‘our_windsor’;
else if (siteName === ‘parrysound.com’)
domain = ‘parrysound’;
else if (siteName === ‘simcoe.com’)
domain = ‘simcoe’;
else if (siteName === ‘theifp.ca’)
domain = ‘the_ifp’;
else if (siteName === ‘waterloochronicle.ca’)
domain = ‘waterloo_chronicle’;
else if (siteName === ‘yorkregion.com’)
domain = ‘york_region’;
let sectionTag = ”;
try
if (domain === ‘thestar.com’ && path.indexOf(‘wires/’) = 0)
sectionTag = ‘/business’;
else if (path.indexOf(‘/autos’) >= 0)
sectionTag = ‘/autos’;
else if (path.indexOf(‘/entertainment’) >= 0)
sectionTag = ‘/entertainment’;
else if (path.indexOf(‘/life’) >= 0)
sectionTag = ‘/life’;
else if (path.indexOf(‘/news’) >= 0)
sectionTag = ‘/news’;
else if (path.indexOf(‘/politics’) >= 0)
sectionTag = ‘/politics’;
else if (path.indexOf(‘/sports’) >= 0)
sectionTag = ‘/sports’;
else if (path.indexOf(‘/opinion’) >= 0)
sectionTag = ‘/opinion’;
} catch (ex)
const descriptionUrl = ‘window.location.href’;
const vid = ‘mediainfo.reference_id’;
const cmsId = ‘2665777’;
let url = `https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?iu=/58580620/$domain/video/oovvuu$sectionTag&description_url=$descriptionUrl&vid=$vid&cmsid=$cmsId&tfcd=0&npa=0&sz=640×480&ad_rule=0&gdfp_req=1&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&env=vp&impl=s&correlator=`;
url = url.split(‘ ‘).join(”);
window.oovvuuReplacementAdServerURL = url;
Canada has seen a concerning rise in measles cases in the first months of 2024.
By the third week of March, the country had already recorded more than three times the number of cases as all of last year. Canada had just 12 cases of measles in 2023, up from three in 2022.
function buildUserSwitchAccountsForm()
var form = document.getElementById(‘user-local-logout-form-switch-accounts’);
if (form) return;
// build form with javascript since having a form element here breaks the payment modal.
var switchForm = document.createElement(‘form’);
switchForm.setAttribute(‘id’,’user-local-logout-form-switch-accounts’);
switchForm.setAttribute(‘method’,’post’);
switchForm.setAttribute(‘action’,’https://www.thestar.com/tncms/auth/logout/?return=https://www.thestar.com/users/login/?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thestar.com%2Fnews%2Fcanada%2Ftoronto-reports-2-more-measles-cases-use-our-tool-to-check-the-spread-in-canada%2Farticle_20aa7df4-e88f-11ee-8fad-8f8368d7ff53.html’);
switchForm.setAttribute(‘style’,’display:none;’);
var refUrl = document.createElement(‘input’); //input element, text
refUrl.setAttribute(‘type’,’hidden’);
refUrl.setAttribute(‘name’,’referer_url’);
refUrl.setAttribute(‘value’,’https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/toronto-reports-2-more-measles-cases-use-our-tool-to-check-the-spread-in-canada/article_20aa7df4-e88f-11ee-8fad-8f8368d7ff53.html’);
var submit = document.createElement(‘input’);
submit.setAttribute(‘type’,’submit’);
submit.setAttribute(‘name’,’logout’);
submit.setAttribute(‘value’,’Logout’);
switchForm.appendChild(refUrl);
switchForm.appendChild(submit);
document.getElementsByTagName(‘body’)[0].appendChild(switchForm);
function handleUserSwitchAccounts()
window.sessionStorage.removeItem(‘bd-viafoura-oidc’); // clear viafoura JWT token
// logout user before sending them to login page via return url
document.getElementById(‘user-local-logout-form-switch-accounts’).submit();
return false;
buildUserSwitchAccountsForm();
#ont-map-iframepadding:0;width:100%;border:0;overflow:hidden;
#ontario-cases-iframepadding:0;width:100%;border:0;overflow:hidden;
#province-table-iframepadding:0;width:100%;border:0;overflow:hidden;
console.log(‘=====> bRemoveLastParagraph: ‘,0);
Botched home sale costs Winnipeg man his right to sell real estate in Manitoba – CBC.ca
Social Media Tips for Event Profs – BizBash
April 20: Why this Indigenous researcher thinks we can do science differently and more… – CBC.ca
Silver investment demand jumped 12% in 2019
12 Bizarre Things People Did Just To Make Social Media Content
Global Media Markets, 2015-2020, 2020-2025F, 2030F – TV and Radio Broadcasting, Film and Music, Information Services, Web Content, Search Portals And Social Media, Print Media, & Cable – GlobeNewswire
-
Media13 hours ago
DJT Stock Rises. Trump Media CEO Alleges Potential Market Manipulation. – Barron's
-
Media15 hours ago
Trump Media alerts Nasdaq to potential market manipulation from 'naked' short selling of DJT stock – CNBC
-
Investment14 hours agoPrivate equity gears up for potential National Football League investments – Financial Times
-
Sports18 hours ago
2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs 1st-round schedule – NHL.com
-
Investment23 hours ago
Want to Outperform 88% of Professional Fund Managers? Buy This 1 Investment and Hold It Forever. – The Motley Fool
-
Business14 hours ago
Gas prices see 'largest single-day jump since early 2022': En-Pro International – Yahoo Canada Finance
-
Real eState6 hours ago
Botched home sale costs Winnipeg man his right to sell real estate in Manitoba – CBC.ca
-
Art17 hours ago
Enter the uncanny valley: New exhibition mixes AI and art photography – Euronews
