Don’t call it a comeback.
Sexually transmitted diseases have been here for years, but Oklahoma cases are on the rise, according to BackgroundChecks.org’s The Most Sexually Diseased States in the U.S. list.
Using data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), state and county health agencies and social media surveys, the list ranks Oklahoma as the No. 8 most-diseased state with an estimated 392.8 diseases per 100,000 residents.
This follows on the CDC’s 2016 report that said STDs are at an unprecedented high, possibly fueled by the growing availability of dating apps.
“Now we have apps on smartphones that people use to ‘hook up’ or engage in risky behaviors with strangers,” Carter, Jefferson, Johnston, Love, Marshall and Stevens County Health Department administrator Mendy Spohn told The Daily Ardmoreite.
“Many of the diseases we are seeing don’t have acute symptoms,” Spohn said. “It is important to get screened and treated for any transmittable infections, not only to stop the spread in the community, but to protect unborn children.”
So what’s the most prevalent sexually transmitted infection in Oklahoma?
If you won’t wager a guess, we’ll tell you: It’s chlamydia.
In 2015, chlamydia cases were diagnosed at a rate of 537.5 per 100,000 residents, which is a 21.7 percent jump from 2012, according to Oklahoma State Department of Health.
Next up is gonorrhea! Infections increased 22.3 percent since 2013. In 2015, Oklahoma had 167.3 cases per 100,000 residents.
Oklahoma and Tulsa counties are in the top 10 counties in the state by rate and number for chlamydia, gonorrhea and newly diagnosed cases of HIV.
But wait; there’s more: Oklahoma County is also in the top two for rate and number of primary and secondary syphilis cases.
Comebacks should be for silly stuff, like rolled-cuff mom jeans and men’s blazers with padded shoulders.
Maybe it’s time for sex ed to make a comeback, too.
