Sexually Transmitted Diseases in 26% of US Teenaged Girls

With all the crime and terror that is happening across the world, it is sad to note that it is getting increasingly difficult to be shocked by events and statistics read on various news sites; however, I had to take pause today when I saw this headline announcing that one in four teenaged girls in the United States has a sexually transmitted disease. According to a study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, approximately twenty-six percent of girls between the ages of 14 and 19 (over 3 million teenaged girls) is or has been infected with an STD, from herpes to chlamydia to HPV (human papillomavirus).

The results of this study were announced this March at the 2008 National STD Prevention Conference in Chicago, Illinois. To make the situation that much more dire, according to the lead researcher in the study, Sara Forhan, in terms of ethnic breakdowns, almost half of African-American teenaged girls have been or are infected with an STD, in comparison to twenty percent of white teenaged girls. John M. Douglas, Jr., a CDC director for the Division of STD Prevention, states, “High STD infection rates among young women, particularly young African-American women, are clear signs that we must continue developing ways to reach those most at risk.” He goes on to say that many of the effects of STDS like cervical cancer or infertility could easily be prevented with proper and early screening and treatment.  The data also reflects that of all sexually transmitted diseases, the two most commonly seen in US girls are chlamydia and HPV.  Because of this, testing for chlamydia each year, especially for those women under the age of 25 who are sexually active is recommended by the CDC. They also strongly urge that all women who are between 11 and 26 years get a full HPV vaccination.

Since effective testing and screening are strongly urged, the National STD Prevention Conference also had much discussion on this as well, including more creative and effective programs that have increased the rates of STD diagnoses. Recently, there was a confidential program to screen for chlamydia in several California clinics. This program was aimed towards those high-school-aged teenagers who sought out STD services and contraception. This resulted in a much higher screening rate (over 85%). In addition, the program was a demonstration of the higher rate of STD infection in African-Americans (just under 10%) compared to that of white women (almost 2%).

Also highlighted at this year’s conference was the push for reproductive health services to also include the much-needed STD screening. One study researched those women who sought emergency contraception and their STD screening rates. Of those women who came in, only 27 % actually got tested for gonorrhea and chlamydia. Almost half of the women who tested for these STDs actually had one of the two STDs. This demonstrated beyond the shadow of a doubt how any woman coming in for emergency contraception should automatically be screened for STDs since the visit would hint that the woman recently had unprotected sex and, thus, possible exposure to an STD.