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Politics & Government

Tracking STD's in Fairfield County.

The good news: Gnnorrhea cases are in decline. The bad news: Cases of syphilis are increasing.

Syphilis is on the rise in Fairfield County.

That's according to the latest statistics released by the state Department of Public Health, which also reports that among the most commonly reported sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), rates of gonorrhea and chlamydia are on a decline in the county.

The rise in syphilis reflects a nationwide trend, according to the Center for Disease Control's website. Eleven cases of syphilis have been reported in Fairfield County in the first six months of 2010. Five years ago, 13 cases were reported for the entire year.

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Last year, 23 syphilis cases were reported in the county, with 12 in Bridgeport, one in Danbury, two in Fairfield, five in Norwalk and three in Stamford.

Syphilis is a serious infection which, if left untreated, can lead to damage of internal organs, including the brain, eyes, heart, liver, bones and joints, causing blindness, infertility, dementia and even death, according to the CDC website.

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The syphilis bacterium is passed from person to person through direct contact with syphilis sore, typically found in the genital areas.

All STDs are treatable with antibiotics. Often there are no noticeable symptoms.

By law, physicians must report incidences of STDs. For syphilis, physicians must also report personally-identifying information, according to Heidi Jenkins, director of the DPH's STD program.

From that information, it is believed that 85 percent of syphilis cases in Connecticut involve men having sex with men, Jenkins said.

Among those diagnosed with syphilis, 25 percent are also found to be infected with HIV, Jenkins added.

STDs on the Decline

Gonorrhea cases have been declining in Fairfield County since 2005, according to DPH statistics.

While 676 cases were reported in 2005 (representing a rate of 76.6 per 100,000 population), the number dropped to 525 in 2009 (a rate of 59.4).

Figures for the first six months of 2010 show a continuing decline: 234 cases of gonorrhea were reported.

Gonorrhea is the second-most commonly reported notifiable disease in the nation. It is most prevalent among sexually active teenagers, young adults and African-Americans.

In 2008, Connecticut ranked No. 28 among the 50 states for reported cases of gonorrhea, according to the Center for Disease Control. That year, 2,801 cases were reported, a rate of 80 per 100,000 population. By contrast, Mississippi had the highest number of incidences, with 7,494 cases representing a rate of 256.8 per 100,000 population. Vermont had the lowest rate – 37 cases representing six percent of the population.    

Chlamydia is the most frequently reported bacterial STD and, like gonorrhea, can damage a woman's reproductive organs.

Its symptoms are usually mild or absent, but irreversible damage, even infertility, can occur before a problem is recognized.

In Fairfield County, reported chlamydia cases are in a moderate decline. In 2005, 2,364 cases (a rate of 268 per 100,000 population) were reported. In the first six months of 2010, 967 cases have been reported.

According to Jenkins, there is a "core high risk group of people who continue practicing high-risk behaviors" who represent the majority of STD cases.

The best protection against STD is sexual abstinence; absent that, using condoms and limiting sexual activity to a single monogamous partner provide the best protection, according to the CDC.

Norwalk's Health Department runs a three-day-a-week STD clinic on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at which it offers STD testing for $10 at its office at 137 East Avenue. No appointment is necessary. The STD screening also includes conventional HIV testing.  

 

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