L.A. County launches new campaign against sexually transmitted diseases

Concerned about the rate of sexually transmitted infections among young women, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is offering free in-home testing kits through a new mail-in service.

The program is aimed primarily at black and Latina women below the age of 25, who make up a disproportionate number of those infected, said Dr. Jonathan Fielding, who directs the county health department.

Chlamydia and gonorrhea often have no symptoms. But left untreated, they can cause serious long-term problems such as pelvic inflammatory disease and damage to reproductive organs.

“There is no longer any reason for any young women in Los Angeles County to become infertile, suffer chronic pain or deal with a life-threatening tubal pregnancy because of these two STDs,” Fielding said in a statement announcing the program.

The number of chlamydia infections in the county has been rising steadily since 1996, according to figures collected by the Los Angeles County Sexually Transmitted Disease Program. The disease now accounts for three out of every four STDs reported in the county. Last year, the program recorded 43,431 cases of chlamydia among men and women and 8,415 cases of gonorrhea.

Women who are sexually active are encouraged to test for both diseases at least once a year. But Fielding said many do not. For some, barriers such as cost, time and transportation may be a factor.  Others may be worried about the reaction they will get if they ask for a test.

The new program uses technology familiar to younger women to try to remove those barriers, Fielding said by telephone. Women of any age can use the service, but parental consent is required for girls younger than 12.

Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky praised the program for its “innovative” and “cost-effective” approach. "In today's economy, when the public rightly expects us to tighten our belts and do more with less, our Department of Public Health deserves a lot of credit for thinking outside the box in its efforts to modernize our healthcare delivery system," Yaroslavsky said.

Women can order tests for chlamydia and gonorrhea through the “Don’t Think Know Home Test Kit" website or by calling (800) 758-0880, officials said today. The tests will be sent to their homes to be take n in private and the results will be processed by the Public Health Laboratory. A cellphone text message will then be sent to remind the women to collect the results online or by phone one week later.

-- Alexandra Zavis

Comments

[m]

Seems like the diseases are there for a reason (eventually damaging the ability to reproduce). So why in the world does anybody want these people to be fertile?

[Bild Wissenschaftler]

According to the CDC, these are shocking numbers:

"In 2007, gonorrhea rates remained highest among blacks (662.9 cases per 100,000 population. Similar to recent years, the rate among blacks was 19.1 times greater than the rate among whites (34.7 cases per 100,000 population)."

http://www.cdc.gov/std/stats07/gonorrhea.htm#a9

"The rate of chlamydia among blacks was over eight times higher than that of whites (1,398.7 and 162.3 cases per 100,000, respectively)."

http://www.cdc.gov/std/stats07/chlamydia.htm

[Rogue Epidemiologist]

@m
Wow. That's an awful thing to say, and I'm appalled that you made it past moderation. After all, it it not HATE speech to say that certain races should be barred from breeding?

Here's news for you: Not all of the people (mostly women) who bear the burden of these diseases have the power to refuse unsafe sex. They, for varying circumstances, are often stuck in abusive relationships and lack the resources to protect themselves.

Chlamydia is often a silent disease. Women usually never display symptoms until it's too late and they have chronic pain due to PID. It can be spread by deceitful partners who cheat.

"m" just showed an astounding amount of ignorance, lack of empathy, and staggering misogyny in his/her comment.

btw, I am proud to have worked at the LA County STD program several years ago. The people of LA County are lucky to have such a great team serving them.

[girlie]

We need this in cincinnati!!
Yes i understand that LA is MUCH larger than any Ohio city but i feel that this kind of free mail kit should be availble to anyone who is intrested in being tested and it should be provided by the government(federal).

Teenage Pregnancy and young adult STD spreading is on the rise only because teens are scared to confront their parents or doctor about options(I know im 17)

It is also ridiculous how MTV has a new show that is about being a pregnant teenager...that is unexceptable of course we all know that teens being pregnant does happen but that does not menan its rigjt to show girls that if they do become pregnant that the have a place on MTV.

STD's are sweeping our nation not just LA.

[Panocha Via]

What about herpes? That stays with you for life and millions of American's have this. Girls and Guys use the excuse that they didn't know they had it just to have sex and eventually give it to their partner. Where is the at home test for that.

[jade]

This is a good plan, however I would have concerns about the parents intercepting the tests since more than likely they will get any mail coming to the home. For those who post trying to incite racism what does it matter about statistics. All young people are at risk, remember they are not racist as their parents are, they spread it to each other.

[Public Health MG]

Kudos to LA County! Hopefully this will help to meet the need of so many women who do not currently have access to health services.

And to Panocha Via: the reason they are testing for chlamydia and gonorrhea is because as said before they are often silent infections. However, most people with active herpes know it. If you have an open wound on your genitals that hurts like a cold sore, chances are its herpes. With chlamydia, it is much less likely there would be a symptom to cue a person to go to the doctor. And, the health consequences of herpes are much less than of CT/GC.

In a perfect world, everyone would have access to any test they needed--since that is not the case, rather than complaining about what is not available, let's praise what is and work with it.

[Viagra Online]

I want to do a campaign against sexually transmitted diseases because I think that this is very important.Brian N. Giddens

[forex trading system]

I like your blogging style, very original, apart is very interesting and I would like learn more.

zadoc

[us drugstore]

This is some very valueable information, thank you very much.