Gen-Probe shares soared nearly 19 percent, or $12.86, to $81.57 in Monday afternoon trading. In contrast, Hologic shares fell more than 10 percent, or $2.20, to $19.03.

The announcement came the same day the companies posted quarterly financial results. Bedford, Mass.-based Hologic reported a net loss of $40.3 million, or 15 cents per share, in its fiscal second quarter as expenses rose. Gen-Probe, based in San Diego, reported a 3 percent decline in its first-quarter earnings.

Hologic said the acquisition of Gen-Probe will establish it as a premier company in STD diagnostics.

Diagnostics tools will play a growing role in the future of medicine because they provide a way for doctors to identify and address problems at an early stage, before they becomes more difficult and expensive to treat, said analyst Steve Brozak, president of WBB Securities. He noted, for instance, that Gen-Probe makes a test for the human papillomavirus, which leads to cervical cancer.

He also noted that many people who have the STD chlamydia don’t show symptoms or know they have it. Diagnostic testing, he said, “is the only reasonable vehicle for addressing that type of problem.’’

Because of this expected growth in demand for diagnostics, Hologic had “no choice’’ but to make this deal, the analyst said.

Last year, instrument maker Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. agreed to spend about $3.5 billion in cash for the privately held Swedish company Phadia, which makes blood test systems for allergy and auto-immune diseases. Medical and industrial instruments maker Danaher Corp. also agreed to buy Beckman Coulter Inc. for about $5.87 billion. Beckman Coulter makes products that simplify and automate biomedical testing.

Hologic said it expects the addition of Gen-Probe to boost its adjusted earnings by about 20 cents in the first fiscal year after the deal closes and significantly more after that. the companies expect the deal to close in the second half of this year.

Hologic’s loss in the quarter that ended March 24 compares to net income of $82.4 million, or 31 cents per share, in the same quarter a year ago. Revenue climbed more than 7 percent to $471.2 million, but costs and expenses jumped 63 percent to $461 million.

Adjusted earnings, which exclude several one-time charges and gains, were 33 cents per share.

Analysts expected Hologic would earn 33 cents per share on revenue of $474 million, according to a FactSet survey.

In its earnings report, Gen-Probe said its first-quarter net income fell to $22.5 million, or 49 cents per share. Total revenue grew 7 percent to $153.4 million, and adjusted earnings were 55 cents per share.

Analysts expected adjusted earnings of 51 cents per share on $150.7 million in revenue from Gen-Probe.

AP Business Writer Bree Fowler contributed to this report from new York.

By Vivian FilerSpecial to the Guardian Published: Wednesday, April 4, 2012 at 1:59 p.m. Last Modified: Wednesday, April 4, 2012 at 1:59 p.m.

April has been designated as National Sexually Transmitted Disease Awareness Month. this subject is not your usual after-dinner topic of conversation. it is instead a little discussed, but very important, one that should become the topic at some point in every family’s “tell-me-about-your-day” exchanges.

Although it is often difficult to approach the issue, it is far more devastating to allow ignorance to lead to an infection. Most STDs are treatable, but some have devastating long-range effects. certainly, HIV/AIDS is one that we cannot ignore.

In an effort to improve the awareness of this public health condition, an Alachua County Health Department press release indicates that statistically, sexually transmitted diseases remain a public health challenge both locally and nationally.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, estimates that nearly 19 million people, most of them between the ages of 15-24, will be infected each year. Although the numbers have significantly decreased since prevention and education have been the focus, there still is a profound need to decrease the prevalence of STDs. the goal of ensuring that everyone has access to STD prevention, treatment and care covers all of the levels of prevention.

The theme this year is “Talk, Test and Treat,” the three Ts to prevent the spread of STDs. by practicing these three preventive actions, we can further reduce the rate of occurrence of STDs. the goal is to talk to your partner and your health care provider about risk factors and safer sex methods, get tested by finding a close location and making an appointment, and treating the disease to avoid additional health problems.

According to Life123.com, the most common STDs are chlamydia, genital herpes, genital human papillomavirus, or HPV, gonorrhea, hepatitis B, HIV/AIDS, pelvic inflammatory disease, pubic lice, syphilis and trichomoniasis.

The website emphasizes the importance of educating our teens, who should know how each sexually transmitted disease is contracted, the symptoms of each, which treatments are available, and what effects the diseases can have on them both short-term and long-term. if families are uncomfortable with this topic, they may want to access support from health care providers at the local health department or talk with their primary care physician.

First of all, parents are encouraged not to use this discussion about STDs as a tactic. In fact, the website warns against using your talk on sexually transmitted diseases to scare your child into not having sex. this statement, in my opinion, does not deny the need for ongoing discussions on sexuality with an emphasis on your family values and the benefits of making responsible decisions.

If you are looking for guidelines on how to talk with your teen, you might consider those listed below. they are:

Have regular heart-to-heart talks with your teenagers about sensitive subjects.

Find out from your teen what has been taught at school or in other settings to encourage your teen to share with you.

Write down some little known facts and tell your child you found something that surprised you. For instance, because they are sometimes used incorrectly, condoms are only about 86 percent effective in preventing pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.

Resist the urge to lecture or preach to your child. When you initiate an open conversation and listen as much as you talk, your teen will be more likely to come to you later for advice and information and with questions or concerns.

According to the CDC, almost half of all high school girls reported that they are sexually active. about 25 percent of them became infected with a sexually transmitted disease before they graduated from high school.

According to Teresa White, the area 3/13 Minority AIDS program coordinator and Alachua County Minority Health Liaison, her current efforts are not only to reflect on the headway that has been made in fighting HIV, but also to pay tribute to the more than 16,000 lives that are lost from AIDS each year in the U.S.

Nearly 1.2 million people are living with HIV in the U.S., and one in five of those are unaware of their infections. In Florida alone, nearly 135,000 people are living with HIV/AIDS, yet 20 percent of them don’t know they have it.

We are working very closely with the community as a whole to include business partners and the faith community to address HIV/AIDS disparities and HIV-related stigma and to spark dialogue about stopping the spread of HIV/AIDS among all populations.

I hope each one of us will take the time this month to spread the word about the prevention of STDs.

Vivian Filer is a retired professor of nursing at Santa Fe College. Email your questions, with “Health Files” in the subject line, to news@gainesvilleguardian.com.

Without treatment, the Chlamydia infection can spread into the uterus or fallopian tubes and cause pelvic inflammatory disease.

The uterus and surrounding tissues can also become affected resulting in chronic pain, infertility and potentially fatal ectopic pregnancies.

The CDC has recommended that women be screened annually for chlamydia.

if an infection is found, the health organization recommends the patient return three months after being treated for a follow-up test.

SAFE SEX CAN BE GOOD FOR YOU

Testing rates were slightly better for older women and specific minority group — 42% of women aged 20 to 25 were tested. more than half of black women say they were been tested with 47% saying they had been screened in the prior year.

Men can contract chlamydia too — one in four show no symptoms while the others may experience symptoms similar to gonorrhea, including burning feeling while urinating, discharge and pain.

Condoms, if used properly, can help prevent infection between partners.

Syphilis cases are up in gay men, according to the Delaware Department of Public Health.

76 cases of syphilis were reported to the Health Department last year. Nearly all of them were diagnosed among gay men, and the majority of those cases were in New Castle County. The department says this may be part of a rising trend in syphilis among gay men throughout the country, as increases in cases have been reported in cities such as New York, Miami, San Francisco and Chicago.

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease that’s transmitted from contact with an infected person. The disease can go for years without showing any symptoms, and can lead to neurological and cardiovascular problems, among others. The Health Department says that safer sex practices and STD testing play a major role in preventing and treating the disease. The department says syphilis can be treated with just a single shot of penicillin.

Delaware Syphilis Cases on the Rise

Gay Men particularly Hard Hit

Safer Sex Practices and more Testing Vital

The Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH) reported today a sharp increase in Syphilis cases among men who have sex with men (MSM).  In 2011, 76 cases of early syphilis were reported to DPH compared with 23 cases for the same time period in 2010.  over 90% of these cases were among MSM with the majority occurring in New Castle County.

The Delaware data demonstrates the vital role that safer sex practices and sexually-transmitted disease testing play in prevention and treatment.

The increase is cases may be part of a larger trend across the country.  according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), increases among MSM have been reported in Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, Southern California, Miami, and New York City over the past several years.  In these cases, a corresponding high rate of Human Immunodeficiency (HIV) co-infection have also been documented in these outbreaks, ranging from 20 percent to 70 percent.

Although syphilis infection occurs from persons with syphilitic sores who are in the early stages of the disease, many of these sores are unrecognized. Thus, transmission may occur from persons who are unaware of their infection. Many people infected with syphilis in the later stages do not have any symptoms for years, yet if untreated, can lead to damage throughout the body including neurological and cardiovascular complications. Syphilis also increases the risk of HIV infection and, for women, can cause problems during pregnancy and for the newborn.

In most cases, syphilis is easily treated with a single injection of penicillin. Penicillin will also stop syphilis infection in contacts that may not yet show symptoms or signs.  For further information on syphilis symptoms, prevention, and treatment, call Delaware Division of Public Health’s STD Program at 302-744-1050

T he ageing endure all sorts of rites of passage. the hitherto lusty and hydraulically independent man pops his first Viagra (surely there should be some small, funereal ritual for this occasion, with a celebrant reading something profound and the singing of an appropriately sad hymn). the golfer, her hips and knees not what they were, takes delivery of her first golf buggy and knows she will never walk 18 holes again. the cricket legend is tapped on the shoulder and told his reflexes no longer qualify him to play at the highest level. the enfeebled suburban gardener who for 50 years has thought of himself as the Tarzan in the jungle of his garden, is at last faced with a job that needs muscles bigger and younger than his own, and brings in, for $35 an hour, the young man who has put up a notice at the local shops advertising that for garden jobs he has ”no expertise but just lots of brute strength”.

Until now I have been the one true brute in my garden. it has been my territory and I have guarded it as jealously as a male rhinoceros guards his territory, keeping other males at bay. but, as one of the rites of this passage of enfeeblement, I hired this young brute and he came around and did in three brutish hours what would now have taken me three days and then would have required a fortnight’s convalescence as my outraged little biceps recovered. In this I am the tragic Ricky Ponting and my Young Brute is a $35-an-hour Dan Christian, usurping me.

Where do they go, a man’s biceps? it seems like only yesterday mine were the size and shape of Australian Rules footballs but today as I shrivel they are back to what they were when I was a pre-pubescent and when my mother, chortling, used to compare them to a sparrow’s kneecaps.

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Mention, above, of Viagra, coincides with news about older people and sexually transmitted diseases. [Warning: do not read further if mental pictures of old people having sexual intercourse cause distress.] I read that: ”Baby boomers in the leading three English-speaking economies, the USA, UK and Canada, are being diagnosed at progressively higher rates of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), according to a report written by researchers from King’s College London, and Thomas’ Hospital London, in the Student British Medical Journal.

The authors explain that a significant number of older adults appear not to be practising safe sex. the authors explain that when a 56-year-old male has ‘waterworks’ problems, or a 61-year-old female experiences lower abdominal pain, they do not usually expect these to be symptoms of an STD; but more often today they are. In their study, the researchers found that over four-fifths of 50- to 90-year-olds are sexually active in the UK, the USA and Canada. the number of reported cases of STDs in this age group has more than doubled since the beginning of the millennium.”

These boffins say that it’s too early to be sure what the reasons for these sudden increases in STD infections among baby boomers might be but they strongly suspect it has something to do with more older people being sexually active now that there are magic medications that, like a magician producing a rabbit from a hitherto empty hat, can produce erections out of thin air, as it were.

The highly amusing William Ian Miller has been saying scathing things about Viagra lately while promoting his new book Losing it: the lament of an aging professor. Professor Miller is (like this columnist) 66 now and what’s refreshing about his book and his interviews and his occasional online essay (you can Google one of the latter at ”Losing it: the Lament of an Aging Professor”) is that he really does write about ageing as a thing to lament. Most popular writing and gibbering about growing old is full of false pep about these being the best, leotard-wearing, gymnasium-going, tango-dancing, new language learning, sexually adventurous years of our lives, but Professor Miller takes the refreshing view that growing old is a tragedy, albeit an inevitable one which we may as well accept with as many laughs as we can squeeze out of our plight.

He’s very funny on the subject of Viagra, saying among other things that its only virtue is to enable ”old fools” to go on being old fools for much longer than they otherwise would if they’d only embrace what the pharmaceutical companies call ”sexual dysfunction” as not a dysfunction at all but a kind of gift from God, liberating men from the tyranny of lust.

It won’t have occurred to big Pharma but what would be more useful, I think, would be a kind of gardener’s Viagra that pepped an ageing gardener up for long enough to be able to perform as a brute in his garden when there are manly feats of heavy work to be done. the drug would somehow circumvent the nether regions (because its hopeless trying to garden with an erection, and one’s witty wife and witty female neighbours say smart-arse things like ”Is that a pair of secateurs in your pocket or are you just pleased to see me?”) but flow to the biceps, pumping them up to be like Aussie Rules footballs.

Researchers warned gonorrhea is becoming increasingly resistant to antibiotics, which raises the risk of an untreatable strain of the sexually transmitted disease emerging, HealthDay News reported Thursday.

“We’re trying to stay a step ahead by putting these warnings and alerts out,” said Dr. Gail Bolan, of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s division of sexually transmitted diseases prevention.

Gonorrhea is the second most common STD in America, following chlamydia, with more than 600,000 people contracting it annually. 

While drug-resistant gonorrhea isn’t a new phenomenon—resistant strains emerged during World War II, the 1980s and again in 2007—the problem today is that the third-generation cephalosporins used to treat the disease are the only remaining types of effective antibiotics recommended by the CDC.

And now, researchers reported in the New England Journal of Medicine, the STD is showing resistance to these drugs.

“The point now, is that we are down to the last class of antibiotics that we know—that have been studied—to be effective in the treatment of gonorrhea,” Bolan said, adding that if a new resistant strain were to spread, “we have the potential of having no other antibiotics to turn to.”

Cephalosporin-resistant strains have been previously identified in Japan and the U.K., though the drugs still remain highly effective against most strains in the United States.

Patient vigilance and coordinated public health policies are needed for the U.S. to avoid the spread of cephalosporin-resistant strains, the researchers said.  

Gonorrhea is preventable with the use of condoms, Bolan said, but because the disease is often symptomless, it is also important to undergo routine medical examinations.

“And certainly if you’ve got symptoms, we’re concerned that you . . . get evaluated quickly,” Bolan added.

For women, symptoms include vaginal discharge, a burning sensation during urination and pain during intercourse. Symptoms for men include clear penile discharge, burning on urination and pain during defection.

Click here to read more the U.S. News and World Report.

Heart attacks and strokes wreak havoc throughout Europe but often travel incognito. a majority of people in nine European countries recognize few or no warning signs of these potentially deadly conditions, a new study finds.

About half of Europeans don’t realize that it’s best to call an ambulance when someone displays stroke symptoms, say psychologist Jutta Mata of the University of Basel in Switzerland and her colleagues. People with high blood pressure or who are obese — two key risk factors for heart attack and stroke — knew no more about warning signs or how to respond to strokes than anyone else, the researchers will report in Health Expectations.

“Across all nine countries, people knew surprisingly little about heart attack and stroke symptoms and how to react to them,” Mata says.

The findings come from a sample of 10,228 inhabitants of Austria, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Spain and the United Kingdom. Participants’ ages ranged from 14 to 98.

Mata’s team analyzed health data collected as part of a massive European consumer survey conducted in late 2006.

Among six established warning signs of a heart attack, chest pain was the only symptom recognized by most people — 80 percent. Almost half the participants linked shortness of breath and arm or shoulder pain to heart attacks. that figure fell to 21 percent for anxiety and for intense nausea and dizziness, and dropped to 7.5 percent for stomach pain.

Among 14 warning signs of a stroke, volunteers most often recognized slurred speech, paralysis and a lopsided face. but no symptom was recognized by more than 44 percent of Europeans. Nineteen percent didn’t know any stroke symptoms.

Italians, Spaniards, Poles and Russians recognized the fewest heart attack and stroke symptoms.

These findings highlight a disturbing lack of health knowledge among Europeans, but it’s unclear whether educational efforts would work best via physician discussions, public-service messages or other strategies, Mata says.

A random telephone survey of 76,864 U.S. citizens in 2007, led by epidemiologist Jing Fang of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, found that most participants reported knowing at least one of five symptoms of each condition. but fewer than 20 percent of people recognized all relevant symptoms, knew that decoy symptoms mentioned by interviewers didn’t apply and said that they would call 911 if someone had a heart attack or stroke.

In that study, volunteers were asked to say “yes” or “no” to six possible signs of heart attacks and strokes, five of which were actual symptoms. a tendency to say “yes” to please the interviewer or as a default strategy may have made it seem like participants knew more than they actually did, Fang says.

Questions also remain about the accuracy of the European findings, asserts internist Lisa Schwartz of the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice in Lebanon, N.H.

Interviewers contacted set numbers of people in different economic and social groups within each country, a method that may not yield a truly representative sample, Schwartz says. Results for young women, for instance, would vary greatly if they were predominantly contacted at an STD clinic, a shopping mall or an SAT course. Found in: Body & Brain and Psychology

(Credit:istockphoto)

(CBS) An experimental herpes vaccine failed to protect young women from the disease in a new study, dashing hopes that a vaccine may soon be available to help prevent the sexually transmitted disease.

PICTURES: Bogus STD cures: are you taking one?

In a study of 8,300 women ages 18 to 30, the vaccine, developed by GlaxoSmithKline, partially protected against HSV-1, the strain of herpes which typically causes cold sores but can also cause genital herpes. The vaccine, however, did not protect against HSV-2, the strain that most commonly causes genital herpes.

“There is some very good news in our findings. We were partially successful against half of the equation – protecting women from genital disease caused by HSV-1,” study author Dr. Robert Belshe, director of the Saint Louis University Center for Vaccine Development, said in a written statement.

None of the women had any strain of herpes when the study began, and half of the women were given the experimental vaccine while the other half were given a hepatitis a vaccine. Doctors monitored the women for twenty months, and throughout the study, some women got herpes.  The experimental vaccine was 58 percent effective at preventing genital herpes from HSV-1, but did not show protection against HSV-2. The study was published in the Jan. 5 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Belshe said in the statement he was surprised the vaccine protected against one type of vaccine and not the other, but thinks that finding could lead to more research to better understand the disease.

“This is not the final vaccine,” Belshe told WebMD. “This information will help us a lot.”

Some experts aren’t as optimistic.

“I was very disappointed there wasn’t more of a benefit,” Dr. Bruce Hirsch, an attending physician in infectious diseases at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, N.Y., who wasn’t involved in the study, told HealthDay. “I’m concerned if we’ll ever find a vaccine effective for HSV-2.”

“Enough vaccines have failed that companies are seeing herpes vaccines as a risky business,” added Dr. David Knipe, a virologist at Harvard Medical School in Boston. Knipe told Nature News he thinks the public sector might need to fund herpes vaccine research to further advance it.

More than 50 million U.S. adults have herpes, according to WebMD, with up to 1.6 new infections occurring each year. Abstinence is the only way to prevent the STD, and latex condoms can reduce the risk of transmission, but the disease still can spread with condom use. The CDC says persons with herpes should abstain from sexual activity with uninfected partners when lesions or other symptoms are present. But even without symptoms, herpes can still spread to a partner.

The CDC has more on genital herpes.

There is an outbreak of syphilis cases in Escambia County, according to the Escambia County Health Department.

So far this year, 69 cases of syphilis have been reported — a number equivalent to last year’s total. before this outbreak began, the county averaged 25 cases a year. Local health officials are consulting with Florida regional and state health officials to combat the increase of syphilis infections.

Syphilis is spread by intimate contact with an infected partner. Left untreated, it can lead to severe disease and even death. Studies indicate a two to five times increased risk for transmission of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, in the presence of syphilis. Syphilis may also be transmitted from an infected pregnant woman to her baby. these infants are at risk of lifelong disabilities and death.

The Escambia County Health Department is encouraging inviduals to be aware of the signs and symptoms of syphilis. in the initial stage, a sore might be visible in the genital area or the mouth (usually painless). in the second stage, a rash on the palms of the hands or the soles of the feet, moist lesions in the mouth, and/or unexplained hair loss may develop. When sores and lesions are present, they are extremely infectious, and intimate contact with them should be avoided. Early syphilis can include periods of “latency” with no outward signs or symptoms. Individuals experiencing these symptoms, or who have experienced them in the past should see their physician or local clinic for testing and treatment.

The best way to prevent syphilis is not to have sex with an infected partner. The health department said it is important to know your partner’s syphilis status. Proper use of a latex condom can help protect against acquired HIV, syphilis and a number of other sexually transmitted diseases.

Syphilis can be detected through a simple blood test at a physician’s office or clinic. several local clinics provide free or low cost screening, diagnosis and treatment services. The Escambia County Health Department also provides these services.

For more information on local low cost clinics or for the Escambia County Health Department’s STD clinic hours and fees, visit escambiahealth.com or call (850) 595-6532.

Comments

1. cruze60 on October 6th, 2011 6:36 am

   The county warns there is an outbreak? What have we come to when officials have to warn the public over something of this nature? Are officials naive enough to really think this’ll scare the pants back on the crowd that is apt to contract such. like a heavy fog advisory or such. Warning: STD”s coming down the street, quick ,get inside!

2. David Huie Green on October 4th, 2011 10:40 am
3. AL on October 4th, 2011 10:23 am

   I don’t suppose it matters what zip code…. keep your goods where they belong (in the marriage bed) and you don’t have to worry about it (and if you contract it from the marriage bed there are more issues than a news article can help)

4. Oversight on October 4th, 2011 6:08 am

   How many are from the 32535 (Century), 32568 (McDavid/Walnut Hill) and 32577 (Molino) zip codes? At least that’d give us some idea if it is a North Escambia problem or just the armpit area of Pensacola.

5. 429SCJ on October 4th, 2011 4:00 am

Chlamydia, a sexually transmitted disease that can cause infertility, is steadily rising in Los Angeles County and in the South Bay, according to figures released Tuesday.

County figures show there were 44,648 cases of chlamydia diagnosed in 2010, accounting for 78 percent of all STDs reported to the Department of Public Health, which publishes an annual report on the prevalence of these diseases.

In the Torrance health district, 1,383 cases of chlamydia were found last year, or 293 cases for every 100,000 residents – a 25 percent rise over 2006. In the Harbor Area (excluding Long Beach), there were 230 cases in 2006 compared to 332 last year, a 44 percent increase.

The group most susceptible to all types of STDs tracked by the county – chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and pelvic inflammatory disease – are young, black or Latino females. Two-thirds of all those diagnosed with chlamydia were black or Latino and female, and 80 percent were under the age of 29.

“This should be a wake-up call for all of us,” said Serena Josel, director of public affairs for Planned Parenthood Los Angeles, which runs a health center in Lawndale. “This should be cause to take a look at how we’re getting accurate information out there to young people.”

The county operates several public education programs, along with other community health groups. Parents in particular need to be in the loop, encouraging their children to get tested, Josel said.

The South region of the county, which includes Hawthorne and Gardena, had by far the highest rates of all STDs. Figures show more than 10,000 cases of chlamydia were diagnosed in 2010, about a quarter of all county cases.

Chlamydia is sometimes referred to as the “silent disease” because it can go undetected for years. Symptoms are usually mild or completely absent, particularly in men.

The disease is spread through sexual contact, including anal and oral, and can be easily passed among unknowing partners, health officials say.

If left untreated, chlamydia can cause infections in the uterus and fallopian tubes and lead to infertility and potentially fatal ectopic pregnancies. the disease also makes one more susceptible to HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

Efforts to improve the rate of STD testing may be a factor in the increased rates, health officials said. In 2009, the county launched a mail-in testing program for chlamydia and gonorrhea that allows people to receive tests in the mail and send them to the county.

The results are made available online or by phone about a week later, and resources for treatment are accessible online. the campaign targeted young women in particular.

The county has seen the rate of gonorrhea decline, but has yet to make headway with other diseases. In the South Bay, there were 1,351 cases of gonorrhea in 2006, compared to 1,047 in 2010, a 29 percent decline. Roughly two-thirds of the local cases were discovered in the Inglewood health district, figures show.

Across the county, there were about 9,500 cases of gonorrhea, split about evenly among men and women. more than 6,000 of those diagnosed were black or Latino.

Symptoms of gonorrhea can also be mild or nonexistent, but the bacterial disease can lead to infertility in both men and women.

Young people who are sexually active should be tested about once a year or more, depending on their number of partners, health officials said. most STDs are treatable with antibiotics.

Find out more

For more information on the county Department of Public Health report on sexually transmitted diseases, visit publichealth.lacounty.gov. For information on STD testing, call 1-800-758-0880.