PROVO — the rate of chlamydia is increasing inUtah County along with the rest of the state.
After a 25 percent increase in cases in Uintah, Duchesne andDaggett counties, which are east of Utah County, the state healthdepartment joined with these counties to educate people on thesexually transmitted infection. but these same patterns, althoughless drastic, are happening here as well.
Lance Madigan, spokesman for the Utah County Health Department,said the numbers this year indicate about 700 or more cases by Dec.31, compared to 623 cases in 2009, 485 in 2008 and 442 in 2007. Allcases must be reported to the health department.
Statistics from the Utah Department of Health show that the rateof chlamydia has been increasing statewide since 2000; it isparallel to, though far behind, the national rates. Utah Countyalso had the lowest rate of chlamydia in the state according to the2008 numbers.
Madigan couldn’t point to one specific factor in the continuingincline, however. part of it is increased awareness and moredoctors doing the testing. part of it is an improved test from afew years ago. part of it is the health department’s policy to askfor an infected person’s sexual partners and then contact thosepeople to let them know they have been exposed to chlamydia and getthem tested. Some of it is not putting a condom on.
“At the same time people apparently aren’t becoming aware ofsafe sex and practices to prevent the spread of disease,” hesaid.
Chlamydia, which can be resolved through treatment, is mostcommonly seen in people between the ages of 18 and 25 years old; 97percent of cases in Utah County are in people between the ages of15 and 34 years old. Chlamydia also is reported twice as often inwomen, said Dr. Joseph Miner, the executive director of the countyhealth department.
The bacterial disease can resolve itself, but a person is acarrier for much longer and is at a greater risk of the infectionturning serious, Miner said. If left untreated, chlamydia canresult in infertility and other serious complications.
He attributed much of the increase to the improved testingsystem the state has been using; it’s a urine test instead of agenital swab, so people are more willing to be tested and theresults are more accurate.
The increase in population in Utah County also plays a role, hesaid. and while some of the numbers are the result of more sexualpartners and unprotected sex, other STD reporting rates are notincreasing, and those would also increase if promiscuity was thesole factor.
Erin Hellstrom, the STD prevention specialist with the statehealth department, said health officials at the state level aretrying to educate people, especially teenagers and young adults,about chlamydia so they know how to avoid it and to get screened ifthey think they’ve been exposed. a social marketing campaign, Catchthe answers, has been going on for the last year or so along theWasatch front, and a website directs people where to find theclosest clinic.
People also can get online and ask questions anonymously orparticipate in online forums.
“We really wanted to get that age group talking about chlamydiaand gonorrhea and being more open about it and getting theirquestions answered,” she said.
Since may 2009, 475 people have asked questions, and 15,000people have visited the website, catchtheanswers.net.