Chlamydia Cases Crumble as Syphilis Rates Rocket: CDC

By Dustin M Braden - 17 Dec '14 14:20PM

An annual CDC report reveals that while prevalence of chlamydia cases have dropped, syphilis cases have increased.

Tech Times reports that health officials of The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released their annual Sexually Transmitted Surveillance report on Tuesday. According to the statistics, in 2014 more than 1.4 million Americans were diagnosed with a chlamydia infection. Although the number might seem high, it is the lowest figure in the last three decades.

On the other hand, the prevalence of gonorrhea, another common sexually transmitted disease, has not changed compared to 2013 figures. There were approximately 333,000 cases in both 2013 and 2014.

The report also showed that the number of reported cases of syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease that is not so common compared to other STDs like chlamydia and gonorrhea, had actually increased. In 2014, there were 17,357 confirmed case of syphilis in the US, a 10 percent increase. Of those individuals diagnosed with syphilis, seventy-five percent were men who engage in sexual contact with other men.

Officials think the increase in syphilis cases can be attributed to gay and bisexual men. Jonathan Mermin, CDC's National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB prevention director, explained: "Some are the high number of sexual partners and sexual networks that create a vicious cycle where the prevalence of syphilis is higher. And that leads to higher incidence, which leads to higher prevalence, and that cycle can increase the frequency of infection," Tech Times reported. .

Syphilis is easily treatable with antibiotics if detected in its earliest stages, but if left untreated individuals who contracted the disease may develop severe complications such as blindness, stroke, and even paralysis.

Both gonorrhea and chlamydia are also treatable if diagnosed early. If treated appropriately, further complications are unlikely. However, usually these illnesses are difficult to recognize because the infected might not exhibit any symptoms.

The CDC report also noted: "Each of these infections is a potential threat to an individual's immediate and long-term health and well-being. STDs can lead to severe reproductive health complications, such as infertility and ectopic pregnancy."