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Find the NCC on Facebook!
The National Chlamydia Coalition is now on Facebook. To follow the NCC, simply visit our page and click the "like" button. Don't forget to share it with your friends and colleagues! | | |
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Dear Colleague,
Welcome to NCC News. This online newsletter was created to keep you up-to-date on all things chlamydia, and related areas of interest. We hope you will find it useful and informative. Please feel free to share this with your colleagues who also may find it of use. |
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April is National STD Awareness Month
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April is STD Awareness month, an annual observance to call attention to the impact of STDs and promote STD testing across the U.S. This year the focus has been on what healthcare providers can do to help adolescents and young people avoid STDs. Some important actions include: encouraging STD testing among young  people; adhering to screening recommendations, as the CDC recommends annual screening for chlamydia for all sexually active women aged 25 and under; and building and maintaining a culture of privacy and confidentiality for both young males and females. Finally, providers should ensure a sexual history is taken, which includes the 5 "Ps": partners, practices, protection from STDs, past history of STDs, and prevention of pregnancy.
For more information for providers, see this podcast and blog post where Dr. Gail Bolan, Director of CDC's Division of STD Prevention, discusses the role that healthcare providers play in educating young patients about sexual health and STD prevention.
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| National Estimate Shows Not Enough Young Women Screened for Chlamydia
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CDC researchers analyzed self-reported data on chlamydia testing among teenage girls and young women aged 15 to 25 in the U.S. from the 2006-2008 cycle of the National Survey of Family Growth and found that overall testing rates remain low, with only 38% of sexually active young women screened for chlamydia in the previous year. Testing was most common among African-American women, those who had multiple sex partners, and those who received public insurance or were uninsured. Retesting rates also remain low, likely missing many reinfections. Researchers found that just 14% of men and 22% of women were retested within 30-180 days, and of those retested 25% of men and 16% of women tested positive.
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Using Online Social Networking for STD Prevention
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Research has demonstrated that real-world social networks, including an individual's friends and sexual partners, can be predictors of STI risk. For example, Peter Leone at the North Carolina
Center for Infectious Diseases
noted that 80% of the cases in a recent North Carolina syphilis outbreak could be connected to sexual encounters within a social network.Thus to promote STD prevention, some researchers are taking advantage of social networking sites like Facebook, which convene many members of an individual's network in one venue. Although research is ongoing, many hope that Facebook and other social networking sites could be key in helping people stay informed of their health risks and in destigmatizing STD infection.
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NCC Research Translation Committee: Expert Commentary
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In the third installment of the NCC Research Translation Committee's Expert Commentary, effective partner treatment and patient retesting strategies are discussed. Research demonstrates that as many as 20% of females acquire chlamydia or gonorrhea within six months after their initial positive test and treatment, and repeat infection is associated with an increased risk of reproductive complications, including a four-fold risk of pelvic inflammatory disease and a two-fold risk of ectopic pregnancy. The 2010 STD Treatment Guidelines recommend that retesting be a priority for providers.
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| Birth Rates for U.S. Teenagers Reach Historic Lows
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According to recently released data from the National Vital Statistics System, the U.S. teen birth rate declined 9% from 2009 to 2010, reaching a hi storic low at 34.3 births per 1,000 women aged 15-19. The rate dropped 44% from 1991 through 2010. Rates by age, race, and ethnic group were lower in 2010 than ever before, with fewer babies born to teenagers than any year since 1946. Teen childbearing has been on a long-term decline in the U.S.; however, the U.S. rate still remains one of the highest among industrialized countries. Teen births continue to be a significant public health concern, with public costs estimated at $10.9 billion annually.
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| New Video on Point-of-Care Testing for STDs
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The John Hopkins University Center for Point-of-Care Testing for Sexually Transmitted Diseases recently released a video discussing the need to develop acceptable and available point-of-care tests for diagnosing STDs. Stigma, privacy, and confidentiality issues make STDs optimal areas for point-of-care tests at healthcare facilities and for over-the-counter assays performed at home. Check out the video entitled "Developing Point-of-Care Tests for Sexually Transmitted Diseases: An Opportunity for the Diagnostics Industry" on YouTube.
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